Rules Set In Love: Notebook 2
by HaleyJo
Summary: Love is something you can never plan for, no matter how brilliant you are. Even if you’re a college-bound prodigy, or the greatest detective in the world. Love changes all the rules, even those everyone believed to be set in stone. LxOC
1. I'm Back

Author's Note: As promised, here is the second part to Rules Set In Love.

* * *

**1. I'M BACK**

Amane Misa sighed sadly as she clutched her handbag tighter, feeling the usual guilt and confusion and conflict building up as she walked toward the cemetery in which L and his assistant Watari were buried. A brief gust of wind blew past her, reminding her that it was getting a bit nippy what with the coming winter, and she pulled her fur-lined jacket more tightly around her model's figure. Her boot-covered feet carried her over the chilled concrete, making their usual clomping noise.

She wasn't really sure how this ritual started, but she had been coming here every so often ever since Ebony's disappearance, seeing the graves as holding Ebony's memory too, not just those of Ryuzaki and Watari. Maybe it was an attempt to relieve herself of her stifling guilt over the situation that had occurred almost two years ago now. She had always thought that she would get over it, but the guilt only seemed to get worse and worse instead of better. Heaving another sigh, Misa entered the cemetery, taking the stone path she knew would lead her to L and Watari's graves.

Why couldn't she get over it? Was it because she never talked to anyone about it? Perhaps. She never spoke of it to Light of course, since getting rid of Ryuzaki, L, had been their only option. She never talked to any of the task force about it since it seemed like they'd rather avoid the topic altogether and they didn't seem to really like her all that much anyway. Misa knew that she wasn't super smart like a lot of them were, but she still hated it whenever people treated her like an idiot. She may not be a genius, but she wasn't stupid either.

But that was getting off topic. Maybe it was something else, something she was missing. She was able to get over other unpleasant events that had occurred in her life, like her parents' deaths and her being kidnapped by the mafia as ransom. Why couldn't this be the same? Yes, she had lost one of the only real friends she'd ever had, someone who didn't patronize her or simply use her because she was famous, but she should be able to get over it. People passed on, whether by natural means or something else; it was a fact of life.

Considering how it was rather late in the day and rather cold, Misa had not expected to see anyone else at the cemetery. As such, it was a bit of a shock when she could clearly see someone's silhouette against the setting sun. The silhouette was wearing a hat and was petite and curvy, so it was obviously female, but why was she standing in front of L and Watari's graves? No one they knew of had been close to either man, so who could be here mourning? She squinted her hazel eyes slightly, trying to see better in the fading sunlight…

Misa nearly choked when she recognized the torrents of curly white hair falling down the figure's small back, the black pentagram-cross holster chained about flared hips, and the dangly dime earring. She almost stopped breathing when the figure turned, tilting her head so the brim of her hat moved and revealed a set of crimson cherries set in pools of pale pink rosé wine.

"Hello, Misa-san," Ebony Rose grinned widely, thoroughly amused by the shock on the blonde girl's face, "It's nice to see you again."

* * *

Author's Note: So how was that for a beginning for the second half? Tell me what you think!

-HaleyJo


	2. Familiar Accusations

Author's Note: Here's chapter two. I think you'll all like the ending!

* * *

**2. FAMILIAR ACCUSATIONS**

Everyone gaped as Misa dragged a very familiar person through the doors to the investigation headquarters. After not seeing or hearing from her in two years, it was almost impossible to believe she was alive. The beautiful white haired girl was grinning like an idiot as she walked in, her pink eyes dancing with glee and mirth, something they never saw after L's death. Her face was slightly sharper than it had been before, her stubborn baby fat finally giving way to her more mature features, but still quite soft for someone her age, which would be twenty years old by now.

"Hi, everyone!" Ebony's grin somehow widened in pure amusement over the whole situation. From her angle, it was more than a little funny, "It's good to see you too! I've been great, thanks for asking!"

"E-Ebony-chan?!" Matsuda was the first to recover, jumping up from his seat. It looked like he was about to hug her before thinking better of it, probably remembering how physical contact sometimes made her violent, "I-I can't believe it! We all thought that you'd…well, we thought…"

"That I'd off-ed myself?" Ebony finished for him, giggling in pure amusement. No one could ever recall seeing her so happy, "Yeah, I imagine it looked that way, huh? Me disappearing after walking around like a zombie for about two weeks if memory serves. But no worries! I'm obviously very much alive. I could be wrong, but I was last time I checked."

"Ebony," Light stood from his chair, smiling that smile of his that used to be sincere before he picked up the Death Note two years ago. He was genuinely glad to see her alive, though. Like everyone else, he'd truly thought that she'd committed suicide, "It's great to see you. You've grown up some, haven't you?"

"Yeah, two years will do that to a person. Oh yeah!" Ebony grinned and started digging around in a dark messenger bag she had slung across her shoulder, pulling out a bag full of bright red apples, "Where's Ryuk-kun? I miss that guy. He's always so funny!"

"…How do you know of the Shinigami?" Aizawa asked her, his suspicion of her shooting through the roof just as everyone else's was.

"Oh, I've always been able to see Shinigami," Ebony shrugged as she looked over the monitors by Light's desk, looking through the rooms they showed. She offered up that surprising bit of information like it was only natural for her to do so, "Since birth, pretty much, and I remember how much Ryuk-kun loves apples. The poor creature is addicted to them!"

"Heard my name mentioned."

"Ryuk-kun!" Ebony grinned as she spun around the face the dark, lanky Shinigami who had just walked in through the wall and held up the bag of apples, "Long time no see. I brought you a present!"

Ryuk just about died at the sight of the beautiful blood red apples the white haired Shinigami girl was holding out to him. She laughed as he grabbed them from her and started gulping them down like he'd been nearly starved to death. For a Shinigami, Ryuk was pretty unique and entertaining. She supposed she shouldn't talk since she wasn't your typical Shinigami either, half or no, but she'd grown up around humans instead of other reapers.

"So, Ebony," Light called her attention from Ryuk to him, his brilliant mind racing. If Ebony was telling the truth about always being able to see Shinigami, then she had known all along that he was Kira. Now he understood why she'd never once questioned L's seeming baseless accusations. He had assumed it was because of her feelings for the late detective, but it had been more than that, much more, "Where have you been all this time? How did you just vanish?"

"Now why in the world would I tell you that?" Ebony asked as she starting fiddling with one of her sugar curls. Her face and voice suggested that he should have known better than to ask, which honestly irked him a bit. It reminded him of L, "I've been hanging around with people who Kira would want dead! I would never place them in danger by talking about them to anybody, no matter whose side they're on! I've always found that the best way to keep a secret is to keep your mouth shut rather than stringing together lie after lie that you could eventually trip over."

"…That makes sense," Ide mused, nodding his head slowly. From what he could tell, everyone liked this girl. He supposed she couldn't be too bad, although he personally thought she was a bit off her rocker. Really, what kind of sane, twenty year old woman walked around without shoes?

Suddenly, a ringing sound prevented anyone from asking any more questions. Ebony's eyes lit up and she quickly fumbled with the clasp of her holster, digging out a small, black cell phone. It was strange to see her using a cell phone since she had been technologically retarded the last time they'd seen her.

"Excuse me," Ebony flipped the phone open and walked to a corner of the room, surprising everyone when she started speaking in English. Only Light could understand what she was saying, "Hello? Hi, love! Yeah, I'm here….Oh, you should have seen her face! I wish I'd gotten a picture!...Yeah, I know….Haven't said a word, no worries. You know I'm a wonderful secret-keeper…Gone? When….? And you're just telling me _now_? Where to…? He did _what_?! Oh, you have _got_ to be kidding me! And you still insist that place produces sane people?! Damn crazy head…No later than 10:00, I know. Worry wart….Tell her I said 'hi' and that I love her, ok? I love you too. Bye!"

"You speak English?" Misa asked, very impressed. She had mastered a whole other language in just two years? It was amazing! She had known that Ebony was quite smart, but not _this_ smart.

"Yeah, and it was a bitch to learn with all their slang and things. I don't know how they ever understand what they're saying!" Ebony rolled her eyes as she dropped her phone back into her holster, snapping it shut, "Just lucky I have a good memory, otherwise I probably never would have had the patience for it."

"Who was that?" Light asked. It was obviously someone she cared for very much since she had told them she loved them. 'Love' was not a word Ebony would or even could toss around lightly

"Ah-ah-ah!" Ebony waggled her finger in his face, a very slight grin peeking at the corners of her lips. The longer she was here, the more she reminded him of L, something he was not liking in the least bit after going to so much trouble to get rid of the infuriating bastard, "I already said I'm not talking about anyone I've been hanging around with these past two years. Safety precaution. You understand."

"Yeah," Light nodded, still making sure to keep his growing irritation from showing in his facial expressions. Ebony wasn't avoiding saying anything because she thought information could leak from the task force to Kira. She wasn't saying anything because she knew _he_ was Kira. Her secret-keeping tactic of simply keeping her mouth shut was turning out to be very effective and due to her stubborn, overprotective nature, Light doubted he could ever trick her into letting something slip that she shouldn't have. She was too tight-lipped for such a simple trick to work on her.

"Don't know how long I'll be here, though," Ebony continued as though he hadn't said a word, "There's been aaaannn…unforeseen development, I guess you could call it. That's putting it nicely, I suppose."

"What kind of development?" Soichiro asked, "Who are you working for? We really need some help. The NPA Director Takimura was kidnapped not long ago, and we don't know who did it."

"Kidnapping…I see," Ebony's brow furrowed as she thought. She then looked to Soichiro, an expression of sincere regret on her white face, "I'm sorry, but I can't tell you anything about who I'm working with. I was sworn to secrecy, and in a case like this, especially with the reach Kira has, it seems that the fewer people who know what's going on, the better."

Ebony started flicking her dime earring back and forth between her index and middle fingers, bouncing on the balls of her feet while looked at Light with a somewhat odd expression.

"What's wrong, Ebony-chan?" Misa asked as she observed the other girl's weird actions, "Do you have to go to the bathroom?"

"Nope," Ebony sighed, a pout developing in her seraphic face as she pointed at Light, "I just really, _really_ want to hit him but I know I can't in these circumstances."

"Ebony!" Soichiro couldn't believe what she'd just said. Why in the world would she want to hit his son? Everyone else in the room was just as shocked by the seemingly baseless desire.

"I think that was uncalled for," Light stated, narrowing his eyes just slightly, "I realize you still think I'm Kira because that's what Ryuzaki believed, but you shouldn't let your infatuation with him make your decisions for you."

Ebony made her humming noise and spun around, headed for the door before glancing back over her shoulder.

"Yeah. I do believe you're Kira. Actually, I know it for a fact, I just don't have any proof of it. But mark my words, Yagami Light," Her pink eyes narrowed and her voice ran over steel on its way out, a tone she hadn't used since her fighting days had finally been ended for good, "You took away the only three people I've ever loved and been loved by. I will not release my last breath from my body until Kira is eradicated from this world by whatever means necessary."

No one followed her on her way out, and she hadn't imagined that anyone would. Her statement had left them in too much shock for them to even think about coming after her until she was already too far away.

Ebony hummed her lullaby as she walked away from the headquarters Light had taken over from the inside, acting as both L and Kira. It sickened her to see the place L had built for them in the hands of that psychopath, sitting in _his_ chair and using _his_ equipment, but it couldn't be helped. There was nothing anyone could do at the moment, so stressing over it did nothing but add unneeded stress on her already stressed shoulders. It had been such a chore to control her anger, wanting nothing more than to dispense with the control and beat Light to a bloody pulp, but all that would do was get her convicted of aggravated assault. She couldn't do anyone any good if she was in prison.

Picking up her speed, Ebony hurried back to the hotel she was currently staying in, making a beeline for the elevator and ignoring anyone who sent her odd looks for her physical features or her naked feet. She tapped her bare foot impatiently against the floor as she waited for the elevator to take her to the floor she desired. Almost tripping, she sprang from the elevator the second it was open enough for her to slip through and approached a door, knocking gently with her knuckles.

She only had to wait a few seconds before the door opened and she was gathered into a man's lanky arms, a set of gentle lips pressing against her throat.

"I take it you missed me?" Ebony giggled as the lips against her throat tickled her.

"Very much love," L, the greatest detective on earth, nuzzled his face into her neck, sighing contentedly as both recalled the day their lives began again...

* * *

Author's Note: L's alive! L's alive! Did you all really think I'd leave him dead? He's my favorite Death Note character. Of course I couldn't leave him dead. It wasn't fair.

**xlostinmyownworldx:** Yay! I'm glad you're happy. Does this make you even happier? I hope so!

**Marisol Akyri:** No, Misa won't just switch instantly. She's too obsessed with Light for that. Don't worry.

**Midnight Hikari:** Wow. I'm glad you liked the first part to read it all in one night. I hope this one is just as good if not better.

**IvoryCrayon:** Yes, we all want to skin Light alive and leave him out to get eaten by rabid dogs. Damn prick...

**Hao'sAnjul:** Here's that twist you hoped for. L is back and ready to kick Light's ass! If Ebony doesn't kill him first, anyway.

**HayhnGirl:** Here's more chapters. How did I do?

**MythCreatorWriter:** L's returned, so get off my back! Kidding! I'd be saying the same thing if I were the reader instead of the writer.

**LittleKittyShaoMao:** Sorry, I couldn't keep L dead. I love the guy too much, and I love happy endings. So, sorry, but at least I killed him once, right?

See? Both are back. People got so pissed off at me when Ebony supposedly committed suicide, but I thought that was so silly. I never said she had committed suicide, just that it was assumed she had. Read between the lines, people! Please review for me.

-HaleyJo


	3. Revival

Author's Note: Sorry this is taking longer than before. This one is pretty long, so please enjoy!

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**3. REVIVAL**

Misa frowned as she dressed in her nightgown, hoping Light would be coming home tonight. He was always working so hard being a distracting L and an effective Kira that he rarely had time for her. The last time they'd made love had been a little over a week ago since she was usually asleep by the time he returned.

'_But he does love me. He says he does,'_ Misa sighed as she wormed under the covers of the bed that was too big for just one person, _'Light wouldn't lie about something like that. I'm useful to him, so he loves me. I know it….Doesn't he?'_

Misa shook those thoughts away, suddenly feeling very disloyal. This was Light she was talking about! How could she think such horrible things about him? What kind of lover was she to question her boyfriend's love for her? Giving herself a good shake, Misa tried to think about something else, which effectively came in the form of her old friend's unexpected return.

_--_

_Ebony walked through the streets of the city, her cold bare feet dragging against the freezing pavement. The sun had set long ago, so any heat it may have given the pavement was long gone. She paid no attention to the meaningless people waltzing on by her, many of whom were giving her odd looks due to her strange appearance and mismatched attire consisting of a large, white shirt over black leggings, a black gentleman's hat over her curly white hair, a holster gently bumping against her hip, making the chains rattle, and no shoes on her cold-numbed feet. Even if her feet were to begin bleeding she'd never notice, and she probably wouldn't care either. Her only movement apart from her autopilot feet was her hand placing itself over Watari's hat when someone bumped into her, but she just brushed it off, continuing on her way as they did theirs. It wasn't like she hadn't bumped into several people already while walking around in her pretty much comatose state._

"_Ebony! Hey!"_

_--_

Never had Misa been so relieved in her life when she came to the cemetery to see Ebony standing there before the graves, bare feet, holster, white curls and all. After thinking that her and Light's actions had led to Ebony's suicide, it was like a huge weight had been lifted from her not terribly strong shoulders. She still felt guilty from having to take her first love away, but she seemed so happy now.

Misa may not have been the best at picking out the hidden emotions of other people, but she wasn't completely blind. After spending a lot of time around people, she did learn their faces and movements eventually. Slower than most of those she hung around, but still capable. Once she'd gotten to know Ebony well enough, once she'd laughed and talked with her, she had been able to notice an underlying sadness in her best friend that never really went away. It was something that kept her from truly enjoying her life and really living it. It was more like she was only around because…because…..

_--_

_It took her a second, but she dimly registered that someone had called out her name. She turned to find that Amori Yukio, the young man who had been lusting after her for over a year now, was at her side, looking far more thrilled to see her than she was to see him. After she came back to reality a bit more, Ebony realized that her feet had taken her to the front of the bakery in which she had worked before being confined. She could even see Leiko behind the counter, looking at her with curious eyes. She was probably wondering where the white haired girl had disappeared to all these months, but Ebony wasn't about to offer up any answers. Her life's events were nobody's business but her own._

"_Hello, Amori-san," Ebony answered, finding her voice was as lifeless as she felt. Yukio picked up on her distress and seemed concerned._

"_Are you alright?" He asked, attempting to lay a comforting hand on her shoulder, but she moved it away._

"_I've lost someone very dear to me recently. Three people, in fact," Ebony divulged that much, hoping he would take the hint and leave her be._

_Unfortunately for her, it had the opposite effect. Thinking that perhaps this could be his chance to charm the beautiful girl, Yukio did his best to make his face and voice warm and comforting. It was a combination that had made many women swoon on the spot, but Ebony was different. All it did was sicken her that he would attempt to use her grief to lure her to his bed. Her hands balled into fists at her sides, longing to break his teeth._

"_You better catch that paper," He said suddenly, pointing to her holster, "It's about to fall out."_

'_**Paper?'**__ Ebony looked down and sure enough, a folded slip of paper was stuck in the clasp of her holster. But she hadn't had any papers, and this looked more like it had been put there from the outside, not falling out from the inside. Curiosity taking hold, she tugged the paper from where it was caught and unfolded it, smoothing out the creases to read it and turning so Yukio could not, her eyes scanning over the first couple lines…_

…_then she reread them…_

…_only to reread them again…_

'_**What…? Th-this is….it's not….Impossible…..c-could it…?'**_

_--_

…well, she was just _around_. It was like her life had never really mattered to her, like it was just something she was doing at the time. She had never attempted suicide, even with her problematic life, but it seemed more like she just couldn't be bothered with it, like it wasn't worth exerting the effort to die. She just simply didn't care one way or the other. Misa had to admit that such a mindset was frightening to her and probably would be to others as well.

But now she seemed genuinely _happy_. Her smiles were real and her voice was lighter. She had a new spring in her step and the dullness behind her eyes had been buffed up to shine brightly like it always should have. Misa had no idea what had caused the change and was terribly curious, but she was thankful for it whatever it was. These past two years had transformed her into the girl she should have been had her life run more smoothly during her childhood and adolescent days.

"_Aw, come on! We could have stopped! The apple stand was right there!"_

Misa shot up upon hearing the voice of the dark Shinigami who accompanied her from time to time but usually Light wherever he went, a smile breaking out over her face. She instantly scampered up from the bed sheets and ran out of the room.

"Light!" She ran up to the bronze haired genius she loved and threw her arms around her neck, grinning happily, "You're home early tonight! You're done for the day?!"

"No," Light slipped from her embrace as he loosened his tie and shrugged off his suit jacket, "It looks like I won't have much time for sleep for a while."

"Oh…" Misa sighed and flopped back onto the bed, using a book to hide her disappointment, "Ok…"

"Ryuk," Light called his attention after he'd sat at his laptop and thought quietly for a while, "Who's the current owner of the Death Note hidden by my father?"

"Huh?" Ryuk thought about it and realized he really had no idea, "Well, Soichiro…Oh! Wait, did you ever relinquish ownership of it? Well, even if you didn't, it's been in Soichiro's possession for a long time, so maybe the ownership's passed to him…?"

"I wish Rem was the one who survived," Light sighed, recalling the female Shinigami's ability to accurately and completely explain different aspects of how Death Note ownership worked.

_--_

_Ebony suddenly snapped her head up and turned away, ignoring Yukio's call after her. All she could focus on was the words that had burned themselves into her brain, repeating them over and over and over in her mind._

_**Ebony Rose,**_

_**Please attempt to not make a scene, no matter how excited you may become. Discretion must be taken, given the circumstances. I cannot say much here, since I would rather be face to face with you to share the details. In any case, you should know that not everything is as it currently appears to be. Yes, I died, but I am no longer dead. I will explain later. Please just hasten to the Imperial hotel. With your knowledge of the city, I am certain you can find it. Simply take the elevator and proceed to the top floor, the last room on your right. I will be awaiting you. Please hurry, love.**_

_It was unsigned, but she knew who had written it. The use of her name like this clinched it. She couldn't believe that he had missed him! He had bumped into her for pity's sake! She should have recognized that slouch of his! If she hadn't been so interested in the pavement, she would have seen that! Her heart thumped heavily behind her ribcage as she strove to walk instead of run as she wished to, the paper clutched between her hands like it was a holy tome._

_It was about 11:30 when she reached the Imperial hotel, her feet reddened by cold, turning slightly blue. She got incredulous, contemptuous looks for her odd attire when she entered through the door, but no one approached her and she merely headed straight for the elevator. Her foot tapped impatiently, cursing his habit of staying at the top floor while also relishing in it, knowing it was yet another assurance that it was indeed him, impossible as it seemed._

_Her shoulder bumped into the doors since she didn't wait for them to fully open before squeezing past them, her feet now running to the door. Roughly stuffing the letter in her holster, she lifted a hand and knocked with the knuckle of her first finger. After what seemed like forever, the door clicked open and opened just enough for a set of long fingers to curl around the edge._

'_**That hand…'**__ Ebony reached out took hold of the pale fingers which instantly moved to entangle with hers and urge her inside, her size and flexibility allowing her to slip through the just barely opened door. It was dark inside the room, the only light coming from the city lights outside after the door to the hallway shut, locking behind them._

"_L?"_

_--_

"But you know, that notebook used to be Rem's," Misa chipped in, trying to ignore how the mention of the Shinigami's name made her recall when she'd seen Ebony weeping at L's grave, singing a lullaby to him as the sun fell from the sky, "So now that Rem's dead, it shouldn't make a difference, right? Whoever's got it is the owner of it."

"Go to bed Misa," Light replied, ignoring her slight huff.

She had a point, though. The kidnappers wouldn't be able to trade for the eyes since there was no Shinigami to trade for them or even inform them that the trade existed at all. But regardless, he couldn't let the notebook out of his grasp, not when the world was finally starting to turn to Kira. The kidnappers could ruin all of his hard work if they used it the wrong way, which they were sure to do. He needed to think of something…

"Isn't it great that Ebony-chan is back, Light?" Misa grinned, bouncing up onto her knees, "I'm so glad to see her again! She's the best friend I've ever had!"

Light's eyes widened suddenly, "Misa," Light turned his wheeled desk chair slightly to look at her, his elbow propped against the back, "Back when you used the Sakura TV station to first contact me and you killed anyone who got near the station, why did you let Ebony live that time?"

"Wha…Oh! Back then?" Misa frowned, "I _did_ try to kill her. I saw her name and wrote it down and everything, but she didn't die. I didn't remember until I got my Death Note back, and I didn't really think of it afterward since she disappeared, but I did try. She just didn't die. I don't know why…"

_--_

_A set of arms curled around her waist, a nose nuzzling against the crook of her neck. She was then turned around and held close to another thin body as a pair of lips pressed against her forehead._

"_Yes, love," She nearly collapsed upon hearing that deep, listless voice she'd come to love over the past year, "I'm here."_

_Ebony didn't have any time to respond before his mouth covered hers, his body backing her up into the wall behind her. One of his long hands tangled in her hair while the other grasped her waist just above the curve of her hip, boxing her in and bringing them impossibly closer._

_L moaned softly against her lips as her arms snaked around his neck, her fingers burying themselves in his disheveled hair and her nails gently scraping his nape. He licked along the seam of her lips, only having to make one pass before they parted for him. He couldn't keep his hands still, one tracing down her neck and over her collar bones, the other up the enticing curve of her waist. He only moved back when he tasted salt, seeing fresh tears leaking from her glazed rosy eyes._

"_Please don't cry, love," He whispered fervently, gently wiping her tears away with his thumbs. He cracked a slight smile as he watched her attempts to comply with his request, taking a deep breath that made her cheeks swell like a chipmunk. He then mentally cursed when his mind registered the trembling in his legs and knew he couldn't keep his knees from buckling under his weight, his grip on Ebony bringing her down with him._

_--_

Light turned to stare back at his laptop, his thoughts racing. Did Ebony have some kind of immunity to the Death Note? It was the only way to explain why she was still alive. Now that he thought of it, she had seemed quite close to Rem before the Shinigami died, and she could see them as well. Was there some rule against death that neither Rem nor Ryuk had told him or Misa and some way to see other Shinigami without having to touch their Death Notes? There had to be. Ebony claimed to have been born with the ability to see Shinigami, but the odds of that were practically nonexistent.

'_She must have known Rem before Misa gained Rem's Death Note,'_ Light thought, resting his forehead against the back of his wrist, _'Rem must not have known Ebony was nearby, otherwise she might have threatened me against killing her as well. Yes, they only reestablished contact after Misa and I regained our memories. This immunity to the Death Note must have been why she shared her name with us after we got her back from those illegal fights. She knew that I had been Kira at one point, but knew that I couldn't kill her even if I tried. No one could.'_

Light chuckled slightly, _'If only you'd known, L. She could have been your greatest weapon.'_

He wondered briefly if he could use her in any way, but quickly discarded the thought. Not only was Ebony an incredibly strong-willed woman, she had been in love with L, of that he was certain. She never would have reacted to his death in the way she had if she hadn't been loved him. Plus, she had never been a Kira supporter to begin with, finding his cause revolting. She had known of the Death Note way back before he ever knew of it, so she had surely known exactly what was going on once reports of criminals dropping dead from heart failure all over the world had started flooding the TV, radio, and internet. The Death Note must have heavily impacted her life for her to develop such an aversion to it.

Ebony was definitely a problem. She knew he was Kira, could see Shinigami, and an unknown amount of information of how the Death Note worked. That one was currently his biggest problem. She could challenge the rules in the back of the Note and possibly even give evidence to support her claims. His credibility would then be damaged and he would be right back to being a suspect. Ebony's return was almost like L rising from the dead.

_--_

_A sharp pang of worry instantly gripped her as they slid to the carpeted floor after his legs gave way. She ended up sitting on his stomach, her legs easily straddling his trim waist. Her small hands were on his shoulders while his long fingers were wrapped around her upper arms._

"_Are you ok?" Ebony asked, her first words since his name, still high on her joy of seeing him alive._

"_Oh yes," L answered, his eyes taking in her slightly flushed face, framed by her sugar curls that were long enough to reach down and brush against his face, "Just tired. Dying from a heart attack and then being revived isn't exactly an easy series of events to go through, if you can believe that."_

"_Then you should rest," Ebony made to get off of him, but L's large hands instantly clamped firmly onto her hips, refusing to let her rise. L answered her confused look with a mildly embarrassed grin._

"_Forgive me," L said, "But I would like to refrain from breaking contact with you if at all possible."_

_Ebony giggled at his words, "Then we'll lie down together, but I think that would be more comfortable on the bed."_

_L smiled as he allowed her to stand and help him find his feet. She then led them to the hotel bedroom, both stumbling a bit on the way due to their differences in height. Once Ebony had removed her hip holster and gotten him to lie down, L pulled her down to rest half atop him, much like when they'd fallen over after Misa's 'Shinigami' video. Ebony wrapped her arms around him and sighed contentedly as she heard the sound of his heartbeat, steady and strong under her ear. One of his hands rested on her back while the other worked its fingers into her hair. He was really alive. He was really here, his long fingers playing with her hair. Either that or she'd finally gone insane. Everything seemed perfect._

…_Until L tapped her shoulder._

"_Hm?" Ebony looked up at him, question in her eyes._

"_Please kiss me."_

_Ebony blinked before smiling and lifting herself up on her elbows to lower her lips to his. L lifted his hands to run them over her back, pressing her down so their torsos were in full contact. Their legs tangled together as the kiss grew more intimate, gentler than the kiss by the doorway, but every bit as passionate. L's wandering hands then moved to her face, untucking her hair from behind her ears so the sugar curls acted as a silken curtain around their faces, their heavy pants seeming to echo in the small space. It seemed that the feeling of her warm mouth moving against his was causing L to rapidly forget his fatigue._

_Everything was set in stone when L rolled them over, Ebony yielding to his desires without fuss as his weight pressed her down into the soft oblivion of the mattress._

* * *

Author's Note: Did you enjoy it? I know I still haven't explained how L survived yet, but I'm all evil like that. His survival will be explained in either the next chapter or the one after it. Not sure which one yet, but we'll see. I hope you enjoyed it.

**Marisol Akyri:** I don't think it produces sane people either. Everyone out of that place seems a little mental. And who else would it be? I love all the Wammy's kids.

**IvoryCrayon:** Sorry you didn't see how he cheated death here, but it will be explained! I promise. And school is going well enough for the first week. Thank you for asking. That was really sweet of you.

**Lady of Dreams and Nightmares:** Ebony never killed herself, it was just assumed that she did. She was very much alive.

**nekosoulreaper:** Yes, Mello and Matt and Near are definitely going to be in this story. They're too cool not to put in here.

**LittleKittyShaoMao:** Yeah, no one would be that happy after their three important people died, even if it had been two years. Ebony's a bit weird, but not _that_ weird.

**MythCreatorWriter:** Sorry for not explaining in this chapter! Don't worry, I'll get to it. I loved writing how she wanted to hit Light. I wish I could have wrote that in, but it didn't work for the situation. I hope to find one along the way, though.

**Orohippus:** Sorry about giving you a heart attack. Please save your death until I finish this story. If you die, you can't review for me, and that would make me sad...:(

Please review for me!

-HaleyJo


	4. Key to Revival

Author's Note: Ok, now you'll learn how L survived. I hope it sounds reasonable.

* * *

**4. KEY TO REVIVAL**

He followed after Ebony when she slipped by him, hunched over as his eyes scrolled over her cheerful figure to reacquaint himself with her familiar features as though she'd been gone for years rather than hours. Even after all this time, he wanted her to remain in his sight at all times. He then found that his gaze was lingering in specific places as she shrugged off her light coat to hang it in the closet. It had been three years since they met, two since they left, and she had merely become even more beautiful during that time. He knew that whoever had created this gorgeous being before him had loved every moment of it.

"I missed you too," Ebony grinned as she moved to stand in front of him and drape her arms around his neck, tugging him down a bit to her height. He was quite a bit taller than her even with his hunched gait, "Very, very, very much."

That smile she loved grew on his face as he pulled his long hands from his jeans pockets to cup them around her face. He drew her in for a sweet kiss, indulging in her taste for the first time in several hours. Ebony finally had to pull away when her lungs started protesting their ill treatment, placing a few fingertips on his cool lips when he tried to reestablish the kiss.

"Slow down, Lawliet," She giggled. Lawliet had asked her to call him by his surname since his first didn't really feel like his name anymore after being used to identify the detective L for so long, and L was not who he was when around his Ebony. Funnily enough, she had been able to easily convince him to share his name with her. Maybe because she had been kissing him at the time, "I need to breathe every once in a while, you know."

"Yes, of this I am aware," Lawliet nuzzled his nose against hers, making her giggle again, "Your lips are just far too tempting."

"I see," Ebony slipped out of his grasp as loped into the kitchen, opening the fridge to search for a can of soda. Lawliet's grin had just been relaxing when it came back full force as he watched her small hand dig around in her late mother's hip holster. He came and held the hand she pulled back out of the holster once she'd found what she was looking for, his thumb running over the three small diamonds that were set in a thin band of gold. She grinned up at him, "You need to do that every time you hold my hand?"

"Of course!" Lawliet rested his chin on her slim shoulder and snatching the soda can from her little hand, taking a swig before returning it to her. They had been sharing food, drink, and just about everything else ever since Lawliet had sampled Ebony's sugar-coated Granny Smith apple slices when Light was drawing up their fake Kira's broadcast, "I find it highly enjoyable to remind myself that you are my wife and that that fact makes me a very lucky man."

Ebony blushed and grinned as she kissed his cheek. Leaning her head against his slumped shoulder, she took a deep drink from the soda can, blinking hard when the carbonation went up her nose. A dreamy smile then curled her lips and she giggled like an idiot, recalling when that particular event in her life had come around.

She and Lawliet had left the hotel for the Wammy's House after spending about a week there, making sure everything was in order and just spending time alone. The day before they were to leave, Ebony had been noticing some rather strange behavior from her lover. He had seemed incredibly nervous all that day and kept sending her odd glances that she couldn't really decipher. The behavior in and of itself wasn't really strange, but it was when coming from someone like Lawliet who always seemed so confident in everything he said and did.

That evening, just after Ebony had ordered them some food, Lawliet had guided her to the edge of the bed to sit beside him, his fingertips digging into his knees with such force that Ebony had been afraid he would begin bleeding.

_--_

"_Are you alright, Lawliet?" She asked. Said male felt his heart stutter slightly as he heard his real name rolling off her tongue._

"_Your intentions are to stay with me, correct?" He tilted his head to the side slightly, his thumb coming up to be gnawed on by his teeth._

"_Yes," Ebony nodded, not entirely certain what he was getting at. Shouldn't that be obvious? "Of course. I love you, I nearly died without you. Of course my intentions are to stay with you."_

"_Forever?" Lawliet leaned a bit closer, his wide eyes intently fixated on her lovely face, his fingers beginning to drum against his knee, "Until we die of what will hopefully be natural causes?"_

"_Yes," Ebony frowned, each of his nervous antics setting her nerves on end and tightening her muscles in the instinctive fight-or-flight response that had been hammered into her brain more harshly than most people. She tugged his hand away from his mouth, worried he was going to break the skin of his thumb, "What are you getting at? And quit doing that! You'll bite the tip of your thumb clean off!"_

"_Yes! I see," Lawliet took her left hand and folded it in both of his, stroking the battle-roughened skin, "Seeing as how you are not opposed to jewelry, it wouldn't be a bother for you to wear proof of this devotion, then?"_

"_Proof of…." Ebony's eyes suddenly widened, a blush spreading over her face and a smile curling her lips, "You're asking me to marry you?!"_

"_That would be correct," Lawliet grinned nervously even though she was smiling as well, meaning this news made her happy, "Life is short, so I would like to spend as much of it as possible being able to call you my wife."_

_--_

"What are we going to do about Mello?" Ebony asked as she stepped out of one room to follow Lawliet to theirs to retire for the night, "Getting involved with the mafia and kidnapping the NPA director are not good things at all. He could really get himself and Matt in some serious trouble at the rate they're going."

"It might be possible to convince him to go about this in another way," Lawliet mused as he pulled his white cotton shirt over his head, discarding it on the back of the chair for the small desk that resided in their room, "Then again, perhaps not. Mello will always do things his own way and Matt, as his best friend, will always back him 100 percent."

"Indeed," Ebony quickly stripped and pulled on the white shirt Lawliet had removed just seconds before, smiling at how it was still warm before crawling under the covers. She held out a beckoning hand to Lawliet, who took it with no hesitation and crawled in beside her, wrapping her in his arms, "I'm worried about them."

"As am I," Lawliet replied, tracing random patterns on her back as he inhaled her scent of sweets and pastries, "But I am unsure of exactly how to go about making this a little safer. The options aren't many and none of them really do any good."

Ebony made her little humming noise, but she wasn't looking at him. Lawliet knew instantly that she had an idea and that there was a 94 percent chance that wouldn't like it.

"A kiss for your thoughts?" Lawliet quipped somewhat sarcastically.

"Well…I was thinking," Ebony took a deep breath and prepared herself for the disagreement that was certain to follow her words, "What if I go to Mello and Matt and try to keep them out of trouble?"

"No."

"But-"

"Nope."

"But you-"

"Not happening."

"Just hear me out!" Ebony huffed, flicking him between the eyes.

"Fine," Lawliet conceded, narrowing his gunmetal eyes at her, "Thirty seconds."

"I've been around mafia people before so I know how to handle them and you know I am more than capable of protecting myself since you've taught me more capoiera also Mello and Matt would be there to keep anyone from even trying anything since they're more or less the leaders and I would be perfectly safe and since Mello and Matt trust me I might be able to influence them in some way to take a safer approach plus the Death Note can't kill me even if Yagami Light figures out I'm there so there's no real danger," Ebony took a huge gulp of air after having spit all that out in one breath. She watched Lawliet's expression carefully and with her gift of being able to see people's inner faces, she could see he was searching for and failing in finding a flaw in her reasoning.

"Your arguing ability is both amusing and highly aggravating," Lawliet stated after a moment. He was about to say something else when Ebony kissed him swiftly.

"I shared my thoughts," She explained, seeing Lawliet fight against a grin when he was supposed to be upset with her.

"This ill-thought out plan of yours may actually help in some way," Lawliet conceded, frowning at the look of triumph on Ebony's face. He tapped under her chin to regain the attention focusing on her victory rather than him, "However, I will have several conditions that you will be acquired to adhere to."

"Of course," Ebony grinned and tucked her head under his chin, her nose against his throat, "I'll adhere to them. No worries. I'm not completely unreasonable."

"Be that as it may, you come close to it at times," Lawliet sighed, the breath blowing Ebony's somewhat long bangs from her forehead, "You are lucky that I love you and that you are female, otherwise I would kick you."

"Like that would actually stop you," Ebony scoffed, rolling her pink eyes at him, "You beat the crap out of me during our last spar!"

"Not true. I won, but I didn't hurt you," Lawliet reminded her, "I merely pinned you to the point that you couldn't move."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever," Ebony huffed, knowing he was right. Even when sparring, Lawliet was never anything other than gentle with her, applying only the force necessary to win and not a bit more.

She couldn't say that she was so merciful. She had a tendency to be more aggressive than she should when sparring, but that was just force of habit. After spending about eight or so years fighting for her life, two years of simple sparring had not yet been enough to break her of her aggressive tactics, especially since she had never been in a 'pretend fight' before, as she called them. Of the two of them, Lawliet was the one who left their fights with sore spots while Ebony was the one left feeling guilty. Once they'd gotten used to each other a little more, Lawliet had taken it upon himself to restrain her whenever she started going a little overboard as a way to remind her to tone it down a little. He also made certain that she never sparred with anyone other than him since anyone else might try to push it and end up seriously hurt.

"So when am I going to see Mello and Matt?" She asked, breaking him from his thoughts, "It really should be very soon."

"Morning," Lawliet replied as he rose from the bed and went to crouch at his laptop. Unlike Light, Lawliet did so with great reluctance to leave the girl who loved him all alone on the bed, "It shouldn't take much time for me to locate them. You sleep now. You will need your strength to deal with them all."

Ebony nodded, snuggling back under the covers that had been misplaced from her husband's exit. She watched him work at the computer until the soft clicking of the keys and gentle hum from the machine lulled her to sleep.

Once he was certain that she was deeply asleep, Lawliet tugged his phone from his pocket and quietly slipped from the room so as not to wake her. The phone rang only once before being picked up.

"_Yes, what is it, L?"_ A calm, garbled voice came through the speaker and into his ear.

"Near," Lawliet leaned his back against the wall, his eyes watching the door down the hallway, "Ebony has decided to drop in on Mello and Matt in order to try to calm their rash actions."

"_I see,"_ On the other side of the line in America, a young man with white hair and dark eyes threw a dart at a board pinned to a nearby wall. It missed and landed with many others littering the floor in front of the dartboard, _"Then you should know that I just recently was able to speak with the one currently acting as the new 'L'."_

"Yagami Light," Lawliet stated darkly. Just saying the name of the man who had orchestrated Watari's death left a bitter taste on his tongue, "Be wary of him."

"_Yes. Everyone is on guard whenever a Kira suspect is nearby, even over the phone. Also,"_ Near threw another dart, this one actually sticking right on the edge, _"It seems that Director Takimura of the NPA has been murdered and Deputy Director Yagami Soichiro's daughter has been kidnapped instead."_

"Murdered?" Lawliet started nibbling on his thumb, "Kira more than likely killed him to take away the kidnappers' bargaining chip for the Death Note. He must not have anticipated that they knew of who was in the NPA and searching for Kira. This was a rash decision on his part. He seems to make rash decisions often when faced with something sudden and highly dangerous."

"_That could work to our advantage. Thank you for the information,"_ Near replied, _"Since you say that Ebony is going to pay Mello a visit, you should inform her than Yagami Sayu is present there."_

"Yes, that was my intention," Lawliet sighed, imagining Ebony's reaction to learning that Light's younger sister had been directly involved in this whole Kira affair, "I believe she would attempt to murder me if she discovered this bit of information from someone other than myself, and I would prefer that my wife not go to prison for passion-fueled murder."

Near almost smiled, but the humor ended up only being in his eyes. He was even more stoic than L. How that was possible was one of the world's great, unsolvable mysteries and would probably always remain as such.

Once they exchanged a few more pieces of information, Lawliet returned to the hotel room he was sharing with his wife and sank down in front of the laptop, its gentle glow illuminating his face. After going through Mello's typical behavior and the typical behavior of mafia members, Lawliet concluded that Mello and Matt were in Los Angeles. The fact that those of the task force had all purchased tickets of a plane ride to Los Angeles not three hours ago clinched it.

After planning everything out about fifty-seven times, Lawliet finally rejoined the Shinigami girl in bed, gathering her petite body into his arms. He gently moved some hair away from her face so that he could look at her without obstruction.

Her white features always reminded him of what she was, how she came to be, and who had loved her as much as he now did. Rem, the Shinigami who had ended his life only to start it up again not long after. When he had died, Rem had pulled him back from going to wherever it was that he had been headed for once his physical form's eyes had closed. He had seen as she started disintegrating before his eyes, turning into some kind of substance consisting of sand, rust, and various other unidentifiable things. She had told him that she had struck a deal with the Shinigami King so that she could give half of her lifespan to Amane Misa and the other half to him.

However, the hitch was that his and Ebony's lives were very literally connected now. One would die if the other did; that was the Shinigami King's conditions since he obviously wouldn't let Lawliet back for free. The only reason the deal had come about at all was that the Shinigami King had become fond of this battle between himself and Yagami Light, Kira, and did not wish for it to end just yet. Rem had had some conditions of her own as well for bringing him back to life, and they were really quite simple.

Love and protect her daughter, Ebony Rose Accott, for as long as she lived.

'_Not Accott,'_ He gently stroked her cheek with his long, pale finger, _'Lawliet. Ebony Rose Lawliet.'_

Ebony had actually started crying again when he'd told her of her mother's final actions. She had been certain that her mother hadn't loved her enough to let her keep the only happiness she'd ever found in her life. Finding out that that wasn't the case at all had been one of the biggest reliefs she'd ever experienced aside from his raising from the dead.

"Funny, you never cried before we met," Lawliet sighed, resting his chin on the crown of her head, "That figures. I cause the girl I love to cry. Wonderful."

* * *

Author's Note: So? How was it? Sound reasonable? Plausible? Let me know!

**Orohippus:** Yeah, the last chapter did seem kind of dreamy. It was going back to when Ebony and L reunited.

**warning745:** Wow. Hard core reader! I hope this counted as 'original' for you. I did my best.

**Marisol Akyri:** Interesting question...What do you think?

**HahynGirl:** Yeah, I know the last chapter was a bit slow. I hope this made up for it some.

**Hao'sAnjul:** I liked how the chapter ended too. Did I end this one good too? (oh, see my wonderful grammar here!)

**Timekeeper101:** I feel bad for Misa too. I'm glad L still seems in character even when he's in love. I hope I am continuing to do a good job.

**IvoryCrayon:** Yeah, they did. Near has just come in, so Mello and Matt won't be far behind. No worries. I could never leave any of the Wammy's kids out. That would be no fun.

**forsaken vampire of the moon:** I cry whenever I read or see when L dies, except when I write it. Probably because I know it's coming. And I always squeal like a low-intelligence schoolgirl when he is alive.

**xlostinmyownworldx:** Did this chapter make you happy too? I enjoyed writing it. Simple interaction between Ebony and L are always fun to write. I didn't make it unrealistically fluffy, did I? I hope their mini argument evened it out some.

**The.Myth.of.Normality:** No worries. Shinigami rock! Ryuk does too! I hope this chapter is good too.

Please review for me!

-HaleyJo


	5. Volatile Friendship

Author's Note: Ok, everyone got that little change, right? Ebony and L's lives are connected, not L's and Misa's. I'm sorry that caused such confusion. It was completely unintentional.

Oh, and please read the important note at the bottom after the review responses. It is super super super super _super_ duper important! :)

* * *

**5. VOLATILE FRIENDSHIP**

Ebony yawned widely and slumped down more in her seat, suddenly cursing the fact that the seats were so comfortable. They weren't helping her at all in her attempts to stay awake. She took another drink of her orange soda, desperate to remain awake and hoping that the caffeine would help in her endeavor.

After going over everything, Lawliet had gotten her on a private jet to get her to Mello and Matt as soon as possible while he stayed behind in Japan to monitor things from a safe distance. Neither of them much liked the idea of Ebony traveling alone since she had done relatively little traveling to begin with, and never once alone, but it was necessary. And she had a cell phone, so they could talk whenever they had the time.

Ebony sighed. She had nothing better to do, so she decided to go over Lawliet's conditions again.

**Condition #1: **Stay with Mello or Matt at all times. Do not go anywhere alone except for the bathroom.

**Condition #2: **Always lock her bedroom door at night or the bathroom doors when using the toilet or showering.

**Condition #3: **Never take any food or drink from anyone other than Mello or Matt.

**Condition #4: **If anyone tries to touch her without her explicit, verbal permission, she was to use the pocket-sized taser he gave her or knock them out with a thumb to the pressure point just under the jaw.

**Condition #5: **She was to never ignore his calls and always text him before going to bed and when she woke up.

The conditions were not unreasonable and were things she would have thought up on her own. The fourth one made her laugh, though she was pretty sure she'd cause more damage than a simple thumb to below the jaw line. Her first move would more than likely be a fist or foot to the face. But that wasn't the best part. She had been given clear permission to attack people. How much fun was that? She grinned wickedly just thinking about it.

Perhaps the malicious nature of the bare-knuckled fights had rubbed off on her just a little.

-oooOooo-

Mello bit off a bite of chocolate just as one of the mafia goons, Miller, dropped dead behind the couch. He had no real grudge against him, but apparently Rod Ross did. He really didn't care either way. The man had really been rather useless, anyway. Same with the man in the helicopter.

"Hey, Mello," Some other insignificant mafia servant came up, "There's some crazy broad outside bangin' on the door and sayin' she knows you and Matt. Died her hair white and some other weird shit."

"White hair? Oh, great," Mello sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose between his fingers, "Let her in."

"Wha-"

"Just do it!"

Moments later, the big brute returned with a slight girl following close behind, pink and red eyes scanning everything and long, curly white hair bouncing gently against her back.

"Ebony!" Matt jumped up from his seat and bowed with a cheeky grin, "What brings you to our humble abode, beautiful?"

"Your stupid actions," Ebony huffed and walked right up to the two boys, "What in the world were you two thinking?! Kidnapping Yagami Light's little sister like that?! The only reason you're both still conscious is because I was asked not to do anything rash!!"

"Geeze! Calm down, Ebony," Matt raised his hands in defense, "We weren't going to hurt her."

"No, just traumatize her," Ebony seethed, crossing her arms over her chest, "You stupid, competitive-"

"Come with me," Mello cut her off by grabbing her arm and starting to lead her away from the room. Matt followed after making sure everyone else would stay where they were.

Once they were alone, Mello slammed Ebony's wrist against the wall, making her grit her teeth.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?!" Mello hissed, his face inches from hers, "Don't _ever_ pull a stunt like that again while you're here, got it?!"

Ebony scoffed and twisted around him until _he_ was the one pressed against the wall with _his_ wrist being held at an uncomfortable angle.

"First impressions mean a lot to these mafia guys," Ebony replied easily, "Couldn't go walking around like some helpless little girl or a brainless bimho, now could I?"

"Ok, ok! Break it up, you two," Matt stepped between them after stuffing his GameBoy in his vest pocket, "We're fighting against Kira here, not each other, right?"

"Maybe," Ebony sighed and gently pressed her fingertips to her temples, "Now please, someone tell me why exactly you thought it was such a brilliant idea to provoke Kira by kidnapping his little sister?"

"We knew he wouldn't kill her," Mello replied as he bit off a piece of chocolate, ignoring the slight throbbing in his wrist as Ebony was ignoring hers, "From what you told us back at the Wammy's House, Kira doesn't attack his own flesh and blood."

"But things could have changed by this point!" Ebony shot back, tugging at her hair in aggravation, "He truly thinks of himself as a god now! Who knows what he's willing to do by this point! How could you not think of that?!"

"Don't be so mad with us, beautiful," Matt sighed, weaving his fingers together behind his head and leaning against the wall behind him, "We took every precaution available. Even Near wasn't able to track us down."

"Yeah, but I found you, didn't I?" Ebony pointed out, making them both tense slightly, "You know that L and Near have an open communication, so he probably knows where you are by this point. He more than likely hasn't told Light for now, but if you continue with these stupid actions, that could change in a heartbeat! What kind of geniuses are you?!"

A loud snap broke the short, tense silence as Mello continued eating his beloved chocolate, "Quit worrying about things that aren't your concern and go back to your family."

"You guys are my family now, too!" Ebony replied instantly, once again catching both of them off guard, "I love you all too, so I'm not going to just sit back and watch this progress badly if there's anything I can do to stop it!"

"Aw, we love you too, precious!" Matt grabbed her into a bear hug, messing up her hair with one hand and causing her to laugh, "It's just too bad L got to you first!"

"Ha, ha," Ebony rolled her eyes and turned to Mello with a big grin on her face, her arms held out.

"Forget about it," Mello said, a piece of chocolate held carefully between his teeth.

"Nope!" Ebony quickly threw her arms around his waist and squeezed, dancing out of his reach when he tried to hit her, "Now, can you explain to me what exactly it is that you're doing here?"

Mello pinched the bridge of his nose again while Matt took it upon himself to explain a few of the details of their plans. Ever since L had returned to the Wammy's House with that girl in tow, she and he had shared a somewhat volatile friendship, as it were. Their erratic emotions bounced off each other harshly and usually led to their interactions being potentially dangerous to anyone else within a three-mile radius. They had actually gotten into a fistfight maybe a week or so after her arrival at Wammy's, which Mello was humiliated to say that he'd lost…badly. He couldn't recall exactly why they'd been fighting, something about her being at Wammy's, but he did know that they had done some damage and then he'd ended up eating carpet before L and Matt arrived to pry the little demonic wench off of him. She'd instantly calmed down once L had arrived and seemed to only then really realize what she'd just done, proceeding to apologize immediately.

It was only after that incident that he'd learned of her history in the illegal business of bare-knuckled fighting in the underworld of Japan. Somehow, knowing that she was a trained instinctual fighter made his defeat sting just a little less. She had been contrite, which made him wonder if she perhaps had some kind of mood disorder to swing so quickly before reminding himself that she was a girl. Not an entirely human girl, but a girl nonetheless.

Mello supposed that it was her similarities to Near that had made him initially despise her presence at Wammy's. With her paper white skin and colorless curly hair, she could easily have passed for Near's sister. He'd gotten over that once he'd found out how different they were, however, not to mention that Matt had taken quite a shine to her and L had made it abundantly clear that she wasn't about to be leaving any time soon. They really had become a somewhat dysfunctional family.

And the only female member of their dysfunctional family was already proceeding to piss off his mob associates.

Not long after they left their little private meaning, several of the mafia men were on her like starving hounds on a carcass even though they usually kept a steady supply of whores nearby wherever they went. Apparently her brazen way of approaching their leader had not deterred them in the slightest, though that probably resulted from the fact that they were thinking with their other heads at the moment and not many of them were that smart to begin with.

Maybe they considered her worked up attitude a turn on.

Ebony frowned, not at all happy to be put in this kind of situation yet again even though it was she who had suggested it in the first place. She never liked men fawning over her like this, especially in such ways that it was obvious they only wanted her body under theirs. She had hoped that this kind of thing would be over with her fighting days, but that was apparently not the case.

"You all have your own lot lizards," Ebony said, hoping to get them to back off. She kept herself very calm, knowing that simply shying away was the worst thing she could possibly do while at the same time being too aggressive could make them respond similarly, "Go screw them. That's what they're here for, after all. Who am I to ruin that for them?"

"None of them are as cute as you, little lady," One said, not at all hiding it when his eyes scrolled up and down her slim frame. Even though she was clad in black from head to ankle, gloves included even though footwear was absent, her figure could still clearly be seen.

"Uh-huh. Yeah," Ebony said flatly, one hand fiddling with her dime earring while the other dug itself into the pocket of the black pants she was wearing, "Not my point. I'm happily married, you moron. Plus, I've never been attracted to those who would have to keep a pocket dictionary on hand in order to accomplish the exceedingly simple task of reading a Berenstain Bears story."

Rod Ross and Matt started laughing while a few of the men, including the one who had spoken, were going over her words to figure out what she had just said. Once they'd figured it out, they were anything but pleased.

"Little bi-"

He had raised his fists and taken a step forward, but he couldn't even finish his obscenity before he was on his knees, his fingers bent backwards just shy of the breaking point.

"You will keep your hands to yourself," Ebony stated, her fighter's voice worming its way back to the surface, her angel's face dark and cold, "If not, I will begin breaking your fingers one by one."

After that simple yet effective threat, Ebony shoved the man to the floor with her foot and walked over to sit beside Matt and look over his shoulder, trying to see what he was playing.

"I keep forgetting how scary you can be, beautiful," Matt laughed at the stunned look on the mafia men's faces. He grinned over at them, "Did we forget to mention that this little beauty has a temper problem and violent impulses?"

-oooOooo-

Lawliet pouted as he stirred six or seven sugar cubes into the coffee he had sitting on the desk his laptop was perched on. His other hand tapped absently at the keys to his keyboard, not really looking up anything of importance, but sitting there distractedly all the same. He sighed heavily as he realized the problem. It wasn't hard to find since it was always a problem.

Ebony, his wife.

However unintentional it may be, she was always his greatest distraction when she wasn't in his immediate sight. He missed her terribly and she had only been gone for a few days. Forget that, he had begun missing her the moment he knew she would be leaving again. The only thing that had kept him from refusing her to leave was that this plan of hers could be their only choice at this moment. Besides, she was in relatively competent hands and was more than capable of taking care of herself.

'_Well, this pep talk isn't working at all,'_ Lawliet shook his head. No matter how optimistic he wished to be, she was still away from him. He needed a distraction from his distraction. Joy.

His laptop then beeped twice, a gothic style N appearing on the screen.

"Near," Lawliet greeted him, "This is an unexpected call."

"_It seems that the president has died."_

"Died? Suicide?"

"_That's what the autopsy says."_

"….Possibly Kira, though I don't really know what good that does him. Perhaps it is an attack on the United States as a country to get them to back Kira and against your SPK. At this phase in the game, it wouldn't take much for you to be disbanded."

"_Yes, I've suspected that by this point,"_ Near then shifted the conversation, _"Has Ebony returned to you yet?"_

"No, not yet. Why?" Lawliet asked, twirling the small spoon between his long fingers.

"_I have a feeling that the task force under Yagami Light is planning to invade the base in which Mello, Matt, and Ebony are currently hiding,"_ Near stated, _"After losing the murder notebook, Kira will undoubtedly go to any lengths to get it back. I doubt he will have any qualms about killing Ebony if she is spotted there."_

"The task force would never trust her again if they see her there," Lawliet dropped the spoon into his cooling coffee and his thumb was quickly at his lips, "We cannot have that. She is our only way into the belly of the task force right now…"

"_I suggest you have her return to you quickly,"_ Near said as he threw yet another dart at the board and again missed it, _"Before anything tragic occurs."_

"Indeed," Lawliet nodded, removing his thumb from his lips so he could lift his coffee to them instead, anticipating Ebony's reactions and going over which responses would cause the smallest upheavals, "I will call her right now. She has been suffering from insomnia since leaving, so she is more than likely awake."

"_Good."_

Their connection was cut.

* * *

Author's Note: Was this good? Did I make their interactions ok? I hope so. Oh! Also, 'bimho' isn't a typo. It is a real slang term combining 'Bimbo' and 'Hoe'. I looked up slang terms for 'prostitute' and found this one. 'Lot lizard' too, which specifically refers to prostitutes who pick up customers in truck parking lots.

**IvoryCrayon:** What does 'chick-a-yeah' mean? It sounds funny. And I wanted them to be married by now even though that means Ebony got married at eighteen, something I personally would never do, but oh well. It works here since they found that elusive thing called true love.

**Marisol Akyri:** We'll see. And I'm seriously sorry about the mix up with the linked lives thing. My bad.

**Dynasty Artemis:** I'm glad you like this story so much. And there are two of you? You said 'we'. Do you share an account, or something? Interesting.

**SomeOtherPerson:** Yeah, after she gets back to the hotel from the HQ. It picks up right where the second chapter leaves off.

**Mel1983: **Yeah, their interactions are similar since you inspired me and I always thought L would interact with a lover that way since he's such a myriad of controversies. I hope to get more Shinigami stuff in soon, especially since Ebony can now openly chat with Ryuk. That should be fun!

**Hao'sAnjul:** Sorry it took a few chapters to explain L's return, I just love torturing everyone like that.

**Timekeeper101:** I'm glad how L came back seemed to work. Did you like how I made Ebony and Mello interact with each other? Since they're both so emotional and Mello is so infuriatingly foolish at times, I figured an argumentative friendship would be the best approach. I hope this pleased you.

**michi-nin:** Miakmi will be here, no worries. How could it be the next arc of Death Note without that psychopath. And yes! Go Rem!

**MythCreatorWriter:** Yeah, I'll have the Wammy's kids interact here and fill in the blank spaces in Matt's character. I big portion of his character is inspired by how Mel1983 portrays him. It was perfect, in my opinion.

**xlostinmyownworlx:** Yeah, send me your character. I'd love to do something like that. It would be a nice little detail to spice up the story a bit. :)

**panicatthediscotime:** They're married already. I couldn't think up anything for making a wedding, so I skipped it. I might put it in later if you all really want me to, but who knows.

Please review for me!

-HaleyJo

**_IMPORTANT NOTE:_**

I have been wanting to draw a picture of L and Ebony for some time now, but I'm not certain of what scene to draw. I'd like you all to tell me which scene you'd like and I'll pick out the one most voted for. It can be any scene as long as it isn't indecent. I'll try to figure out a way to post it somewhere where you all can see it. An early picture of Ebony is as my little icon right now, so you can see I don't suck at drawing, meaning whatever I draw won't make you cringe when you look at it. Anyway, please let me know which scene you'd like to see and I'll do my best. Thank you all!


	6. Explosion

Author's Note: Ok, a new character is coming in, but I can claim no copyright of her. This character was generously given to me by **xlostinmyownworldx**. I did not create this character, I'm merely writing her. Please send all praises of her toward **xlostinmyownworldx**, a genius to have made such an interesting character and so kind as to let me attempt to write her.

* * *

**6. EXPLOSION**

"Being around all you Wammy's kids still makes my head spin."

"Ah, you get used to it. It won't bother you by then."

"Uh-huh. Easy for you to say. You're one of them."

A young woman of about twenty-one years grinned at the slightly sulking twenty year old woman slouching beside her on the couch. She toyed with a cell phone with her hands at the same time, taking it apart without even looking at it and fiddling with the wires and chips inside. She then blew a large, pink bubble from between her lips, gathering the gum back into her mouth once it popped over her full lips.

"Know where Matt is?" The woman asked, seeing the slight twitch at the corner of Ebony's lips.

"It wasn't my turn to watch him," Ebony giggled, "He's _your_ boyfriend, Tech. I have my hands full just keeping track of my family back home."

"True," The young woman referred to as 'Tech' sighed, blowing a few ice-blue tipped black bangs from her forehead.

"He's probably playing a game or something," Ebony shrugged.

"Probably. I'll go look for him."

With that, Tech stood from the couch, still fiddling with the cell phone as she walked away from the Shinigami woman on the couch. She knew they weren't supposed to leave her alone, but Ebony was more than capable of taking care of herself. L just worried way too much, but it was in his nature as a detective to worry too much. While she walked through the rooms of the base, Tech thought over all the places where her game-addicted lover could be and the answer came almost immediately.

"You are going to kill yourself."

Matt pulled the cigarette from his lips, shaking his deep red bangs from his goggle-covered eyes to see who had come outside to interrupt him while he had a quick smoke. He then grinned and pushed his goggles up to his forehead, revealing that his eyes were a shade of bright green.

"Tech!" He flicked ashes from his cigarette, "Please tell me that you have graced me with your presence for more than just to tell me off for the third time today, and I can die a happy man."

Tech laughed and sidled up to him, grinning when his arm slung around her shoulders. She allowed her head to fall against his shoulder, her pixy-cut hair tickling his cheek and the few longer locks brushing his neck since his fur-lined vest was absent at the moment. She inhaled deeply, filling her senses with his scent that, to her, smelled like rain. She loved his scent so much that she was able to ignore the cancer stick smell.

"I'm surprised that L hasn't called her back to him yet," Tech commented. Matt enjoyed the Hawaiian accent lacing her voice. After living at the Wammy's House for so long, he was accustomed to English accents and had immediately become fascinated by hers the moment he'd heard it. The fact that she was also drop-dead gorgeous had helped with that fascination too, "It was so nice when he came back with her. I swear I never saw him looking so….._human_ before. I'd thought for certain the man had a computer hard drive implanted inside his skull instead of a brain. You remember me asking Watari how he'd done it."

"Ah, yes! A young man in love," Matt took a deep drag from his cigarette, making sure to release the smoke away from Tech and then kissing her cheekbone that was covered by smooth, caramel colored skin, "They do indeed do the strangest of things! I should know, seeing as how you cast the same spell over me, dear heart."

Tech's smile turned gentle, her honey brown eyes roaming over her love's face. She and Matt had hit it off really well when she first came to the Wammy's House at age fourteen, started dating a year later, and had been together ever since. Even though Matt seemed like a womanizer, he was far from it. He just liked complimenting women because it was just something he liked to do, not to use to get into their pants or anything like that. She knew this since he was completely faithful to her and never looked at other women like he did her.

Her biggest clue was that she was the only girl he called 'dear heart.'

"Wammy's House produces such sweet boys! But what the hell happened to Mello?" She asked jokingly, nudging her shoulder against his, "He's always such a dick!"

Matt chuckled at her words, finishing up his cigarette and dropping it onto the ground to stomp it with his boot-covered foot.

"Come on, let's get inside," Matt led the Hawaiian girl back into the building, "I bet they're all wondering desperately where we snuck off to."

It was just so typical that they walked back in to find Ebony and Mello fighting over something. From what they could catch, they were fighting – again – about Mello's idea of kidnapping Yagami Sayu.

"Calm down, Ebony," Tech went over to the girl and started to lead her away, "The arguing doesn't do you any good."

"Yes it does!" Ebony protested, "It's a great way to get out my frustration!"

Tech sighed, seeing Matt working to calm Mello as she was Ebony. They loved them both, but they just got so irritating sometimes with all their silly fights. But Tech liked the younger girl. She'd never met another person who had been in the mafia world for years and years and gotten out alive. It still amazed her that such a tiny girl had been a bare-knuckled champion, but she'd seen stranger things over her life.

Ebony really liked Tech too. Her style was really neat, not geeky at all like most technology wizards. It consisted of black fabric and metal mesh woven together to create a sturdy, but comfortable material that acted as protection from most bullet fire and attempted strikes from any sharp objects. Her boots had buckles and little pockets on them and her fingerless gloves had buckles up to her elbows as well. Her sleeves were translucent black fabric and her top conformed to her body perfectly, a vest zipped up to just under her bust, a gray undershirt giving her modesty. The pants were tucked into her boots and a belt cinched the vest in at her waist, showing her voluptuous curves. She was on the slender side like Ebony, but she had a fuller figure, not so skinny. Huge DJ headphones hung about her slender neck, attached to an iPod tucked into her pocket.

"I'm calm now!" Ebony insisted, sticking her fingers in her ears and humming so that she couldn't hear Tech talking to her. Tech sighed and began shuffling cards on the table in front of the couch. The piercings in her ears stood out in the light. A stud and hoop in the lobe of her left ear, two studs on the lobe of her right, and a stud, cuff, and hoop in the cartilage of her right ear, all silver.

Matt laughed and came to lean against the back of the couch Tech was sitting in, beginning to trace a tattoo he could see through the sheer material on her back. A black and silver dragon spitting flames with purple flowers wrapped around it. Wanting to tune out the world for a moment, Tech slipped on her enormous DJ headphones that she always had slung around her neck, pulling a small, white iPod from her pocket and selecting the song she wanted. Her headphones deafened her to the world, giving her some time to herself to think for a while, to unwind. After some time, Matt's head rested in her lap as he held his GameBoy over his head, his lover still shuffling cards and humming the lullaby from the movie _The Prince of Egypt_. She loved that movie.

Tech had not always been so happy, though no one would guess that from looking at her. Before she came to the Wammy's House, her name had been Alanah Harrison, and she had been living on the beaches of Hawaii after being abandoned there at the tender age of two by parents she had never met, nor could she remember anything about them. If she hadn't been a genius, she would have died out there. Instead, she used her smarts to survive off the land, fishing and hunting fruits while making money performing traditional Hawaiian dances so people would drop money in a case by her constantly moving feet, never once tripping over the costumes she made from the natural resources around her.

After living alone and friendless for about three years, she met a young surfer boy by the name of Derrick Michaels. She had been five at the time, so he would have been six. Their first conversation was about the condition of the beaches and how it was horrible whenever anyone tainted its beauty by littering and their friendship burst from there. A love even began to blossom beautifully until an unexpected hurricane took Derrick from her when she was nine. She'd never see his long black hair or kind brown eyes ever again. His death hit her hard since they'd been talking about getting married once they grew up.

After taking two years to grieve and plan, Tech left Hawaii with the money she'd made from dancing and the money Derrick had made from random jobs and setting aside for their future – about four hundred dollars total – and hopped a plane for Japan after reading about all the jobs they had centered around technology, which she was fascinated by. Derrick had told her that if anything were to happen to him, the money was hers to use however she pleased or needed.

Once in Japan, she began to make her living, trying to spend as little money as possible. She even scammed people out of charging her full price for things, which was how she was noticed by the mafia in Hiroshima for her acting skills and technological prowess. In a matter of three years, Tech had flown through the ranks and was one of the mafia's most valued members. She had everything she could have ever wanted material-wise and even though the mafia's tactics made her sick at times, she just didn't think she had any other options. She felt trapped, much like Ebony had when she discovered Misa had let her photo be published.

Her escape came, however, when a mafia lord she'd been making a deal with turned out to be someone L had sent in undercover. With that slightly creepy ability of his to see the human soul, instead of throwing her in a juvenile detention center, L had her sent to the Wammy's House for one last chance to turn her life around. Her true salvation came in the form of a goggle-wearing boy constantly playing video games and sneaking out for a cigarette when no one was looking.

Her troubles weren't completely cured, though. While she was normally quite positive and headstrong, she would periodically fall into the phases of deep depression she had experienced when the wound of Derrick's death was still fresh. But even then Matt never left her side. He allowed her to cry on his shoulder and always was there to offer her a stick of gum or a Blow-Pop afterward. He would also bring her to the playroom so she could look after the children, something she loved to do. She was surprisingly a very maternal young woman and always looked after the younger kids in the Wammy's House whenever she was there.

Tech was also how Mello had learned what was needed to slip into the mafia. When she'd told him, it was just so she could get him to leave because of all the leather he was wearing. Tech hated the scent of leather. She didn't know why, she just did. Stating to him that his pants stank not long after their first meeting was really starting out on the wrong foot as far as Mello was concerned, especially since Matt had started laughing until tears leaked from his green eyes and pooled in his goggles like on a cartoon.

It was also on that day that Tech had started to see Matt as more than just a friend. She started noticing every little thing about him, learning his moods and responses inside and out to where she could notice his reactions to things sometimes faster than he himself could. She noticed how his eyes were the exact color of the finest emeralds and how his grin was just slightly tilted, somewhere between a happy grin and flirty smirk, making it all the more charming. She noticed the few freckles that kissed his nose, just barely visible, seven in count; you'd have to get really close to see them. She noticed how his hair was dark as red wine when wet and rich crimson as a rose when hit by sunlight. They started hanging out together more and more and, before they knew it, they were kissing in the computer lab while they played hooky from the Wammy's House's school, almost exactly a year after L had sent her there.

Tech would always be grateful for the detective's mercy, for it had given her a new life to live after her old life ended on Derrick's death day. That was the main reason why she was so happy that L had found Ebony to love him. If anyone deserved unconditional love, it was him, the man who dedicated his life to bringing justice to what seemed to always be such an unjust world, true goodness always so hard to find.

-oooOooo-

Ebony sighed, rolling over in her bed for what had to be the seventh time in the last two minutes or so, even though it felt more like hours than minutes. She kept on shifting, trying to find a comfortable position to sleep in and knowing she wouldn't be able to no matter how hard she tried or how tired she was. These nights had been the first nights in two years that she'd had to sleep outside of her husband's arms and she didn't like it, not one bit. She had never slept in someone's arms before meeting Lawliet, and now she missed it so badly that it was disrupting her sleep. She also was just worried. Lawliet had never handled their situation on his own before since they hadn't been separated, willingly or otherwise, since his revival two years ago. Although he had proved himself more than capable on multiple occasions, she still worried. Taking her very strong instincts into account, she supposed she always would.

A sudden ringing noise jolted her from her bed, sending her fumbling through her holster on the nightstand for her cell phone. Grinning at the untraceable number, she flipped it open and held it to her ear.

"Lawliet!"

"_Ebony,"_ His smooth voice came through the speaker and into her ear, nearly causing her to melt on the spot, _"Still not sleeping well."_

"No, not really," She sighed, fully aware that it had been a statement, not a question, "Sidoh's been a bit annoying, but he's not really very bright. I'm surprised he's still alive. If I were to peg a Shinigami as one to die from simple laziness or incompetence, he'd be first on the list. Mello has him acting as a guard outside to protect the base and warn them of intruders. Anyway, how's everything over there?"

"_As well as it can be. Missing you terribly, of course."_

"So what's with the late-night call?" Ebony asked, wanting to skip over the pleasantries, "I recognize that tone, Lawliet. What's wrong?"

"_You need to get out of there are soon as possible,"_ Lawliet explained, not wasting any time and elaborating further for her before she could ask, _"Yagami Light plans to storm the base you are currently residing in. If you are seen by the task force, they will never allow you back into the headquarters again. It is also highly probably that one of the task force members has the Shinigami eyes now. Light is surely looking for Mello's true name with this endeavor, not just the notebook."_

"Oh…shit," Ebony took a deep breath to calm herself, realizing the true gravity of his words. Since he couldn't show himself without putting himself in serious danger, she was their only safe way into the task force since the Death Note couldn't kill her. But no one else had such protection. If Mello, Matt, or Tech's faces were seen… "It's the middle of the night, Lawliet. How can I possibly-"

_**SLAM!!**_

"_Ebony? What's going on?"_ Lawliet demanded, though he already knew.

"Oh shit!" Ebony jumped up from the bed, gathering her things as quickly as possible and throwing them haphazardly into her bag, "They're here!! Shit, shit, shit, _shit_!!"

"_Ebony, get out of there, now!!"_ Lawliet demanded, his heart racing as he listened to the sounds beyond his wife's voice, a sudden clatter, _"Ebony?! Ebony?! Ebony, answer me!!"_

The phone lay on the dirty floor, open to every violent sound that echoed through the mafia's Los Angeles hideout.

Including the giant explosion.

"_EBONY!!"_

* * *

Author's Note: So, how did that sound? Good? Bad? Oh, and I made Matt a redhead despite the anime because any fanart I see of him has him have red hair and I did see some real plushies of him on the internet, and they have red hair so, yeah. Matt's a redhead.

**Marisol Akyri:** Glad I'm doing Matt alright so far. I really wish there had been more of him in the anime and manga. Kind of like Watari. Both were rarely seen but seemed like such cool characters.

**Timekeeper101:** I couldn't think up a better way for Mello and Ebony to interact except for fighting. I hope to keep making this story enjoyable.

**xlostinmyownworldx:** How did I do? Is this the Tech you imagined she would be? Let me know if there's anything I need to add or correct. I don't want to misuse her.

**Orohippus:** Yeah, Sidoh's there. Spineless twit.

**Hao'sAnjul:** That reuniting scene seems to be people's favorite. I've gotten four requests for it so far.

**Dyanasty Artemis:** ...You're weird...

**MythCreatorWriter:** Romance was the farthest thing from my mind with the linked lives thing. I have other uses for it. Oh, and you inspired me to make it that the task force attacked before Ebony could get back. Originally I was going to have her leave before they came, but this sounded more interesting. Thank you.

**The.Myth.of.Normality:** I hope this explained the insomnia thing. If you had been separated from your lover after having been together every day for basically three years, wouldn't you have sleeping problems too? I think I would.

Please review for me. And I need more people telling me what drawing scene they'd like to see. I've only gotten eight requests.

-HaleyJo


	7. Escape

Author's Note: This jumps back to right as Ebony dropped her phone, so don't get confused.

* * *

**7. ESCAPE**

"Mello?! Matt?!"

Ebony rushed out of her room, simply kicking it open instead of taking the time to fumble with a key to unlock it. She didn't know where the hell the key was anyway. She rushed through the halls, ignoring the dank smell and leaky piping. All she could hear were gunshots and death rattles and running feet echoing off the decaying walls and ceiling. She tripped on some loose rubble a few times, but was always able to regain her footing to avoid falling over. Now wasn't the time to be clumsy.

"Tech?!"

Ebony gasped as she came to the staircase leading to the main room, seeing several of the mafia members dead on the floor. Mello was looking at the laptop beside him with a piece of chocolate between his teeth, mentally cursing at how Sidoh seemed to have betrayed them. Kira had to be involved. There was no other explanation. Ebony was correct in saying that the new L was Kira who was Yagami Light, a genius in his own right. They had no doubt of her, but more proof was always welcome.

"Mello!" Ebony grabbed his attention away from the monitors, "We need to get out of here! You and Matt and Tech are in serious danger! Mello, do you hear me?!"

Mello jumped up from the couch before glancing to the side, seeing the Death Note crushed under Rod Ross's body.

"Roy, Skyer," Mello called to the only two mafia members left alive in the room. One with dreadlocks and the other wearing a shirt with dizzying patterns, "Don't let them get the notebook! Bring it up to the monitor room!"

"Mel-"

Mello grabbed Ebony's wrist as he ran past her, dragging her into the relative safety of the monitoring room. At the rate everything was going, there was no way to avoid her being seen by the invading Japanese task force. Even Mello wasn't oblivious to the benefits of having someone on the inside, someone he could trust completely and not have to worry about betrayal, unlike the damned Shinigami outside.

Not to mention L would kill him if Ebony got thrown in jail or killed in crossfire.

"Where're Matt and Tech?" Ebony asked as he released her wrist to look over the monitors.

"They left some time ago to get some food," Mello responded absently, chocolate between his teeth, "They're safe for now."

"Thank god," Ebony sighed, leaning against the desk, "But what now? We're trapped."

Mello cursed as he saw the task force throw a tear gas bomb at Roy and Skyer. The task force was far better prepared than he was. He knew that Ebony had a Death Note, it was the only explanation for her being so protective over her mother's holster, which was just the right size to hold one, but that didn't do them any good. He knew she'd never let anyone use it, even in a dire situation such as this, and he would never be able to overpower her for it.

"They're talking. Must be to Light," Ebony said as the men she had worked closely with two years ago forced the mafia members to their knees and cuffed them, "Mello, they have cameras on their helmets. If they see you, Light can get an image of you back to Misa and have her kill you. She has the eyes."

'_Shit. We're the only ones left. I have no choice,'_ Mello lifted what seemed to be a kind of control, _'L is going to kill me.'_

"Mello, what's-"

An explosion rattled the building, making Ebony jump and grab Mello's arm.

"Are you nuts?!" She demanded, "Are you trying to kill us?!"

"Shut up," Mello clapped his hand over her mouth and hit the control of the intercom, "I've blown up the two entrances," He told the men outside their door, "You're not going to be able to get out of this place easily now."

'_What is he thinking?'_ Ebony wondered, seeing the terrified eyes of the task force. Matsuda was shaking.

"That was only a warning, but I'm going to blow up the whole building next," Mello felt Ebony jolt under his hand and sent her a warning look, "I can see all your movements through the monitors, so if you don't want me to press the button, do as I say."

"Mfh!" Ebony tugged at his hand once he let go of the intercom button, "Are you crazy?! You'll kill us too!"

"Relax, Ebony," Ebony stilled at the fact that he was using her name. He must be very serious at the moment to do so, "I've set up the bombs so that this room is safe. Even if I blow up the building, we'll be safe."

"But you'll kill them!" Ebony yelled at him, "I know those men! They're all good people! They don't know Light is Kira! It's not their fault that-"

"They're in denial!" Mello shot back, "In their hearts they know Yagami Light is Kira, they just don't want to believe it!"

Ebony swallowed thickly, knowing that he was right. She bit her lip against the urge to scream in frustration of the whole situation that had been going on for three years now. Three years of knowing who Kira was and being unable to do anything about it. She was surprised that she hadn't gone insane yet.

Mello hit the button for the intercom again.

"First order," Mello said, his chocolate tapping against his lip, "I want all of you to smash the cameras on your helmets….Throw all your weapons over the railing…One of you hold the notebook, and the rest of you back away…Good, walk over to the door with the notebook…Take your helmet off…"

Ebony's eyes widened.

"You again, Yagami…Maybe I _should_ have killed you," Mello laughed at the irony and ignored Ebony's glare at his comment about killing the man, "But it's certainly interesting that we're exchanging the notebook again. At a time like this, it's easier for me to deal with straight-laced guys like you. Don't worry, I haven't got any tricks up my sleeve this time either. I won't let go of the detonator switch, but I won't have a gun on me, so…"

Mello then paused, giving Ebony a speculative glance. Maybe he could kill two birds with one stone here.

"Sorry about this," Mello moved quickly and pulled a cloth from his pocket and shoved it under Ebony's nose. She panicked at the sweet smell, but there was nothing she could do as the chloroform took effect and she became dizzy and suddenly very tired. Mello caught her as her knees buckled, her head falling against his shoulder as her neck refused to exert the effort of holding it up. Her eyes hung half open, meaning she was still conscious. This surprised him since quite a lot of chloroform had been soaking that cloth, but maybe her Shinigami blood was fighting it off.

"Actually, I do have one trick up my sleeve, but it's non-lethal to you, so don't worry. You can check everything as you come into the room, so you have nothing to worry about. The only things you can bring inside are the notebook and the mask. Come on in."

Soichiro entered the room and his eyes widened behind his glasses.

"Ebony!"

"_What?!"_ Back at their American headquarters, Light was dumbfounded. What the hell was going on? _"Deputy Director, can you repeat that? What's going on?"_

"Mello has Ebony," Soichiro replied, his voice shaking, "She looks like she's drugged."

"Yeah, so you see my one trick," Mello grinned, "Now, bring the notebook and the mask to me. If all goes well, you can bring Ebony back home."

"Mmeo," Ebony tried to speak, tried to warn him, but her tongue was heavy, "Theys…Eys…nme…Kra's ess…"

"_Dad, his face?"_ Light was panicking a bit now since he couldn't see what was going on. He could only hear it, _"Did you see his face?"_

Soichiro concentrated on the young man's face, "Mello…M-I-H-A-E-L…K-E-E-H-L…Your real name is Mihael Keehl."

'_Damn!! How?! Did he get it from Snydar…? Did Kira control Snydar…? No, wait,'_ Mello tried to calm down, _'Ebony was trying to say something. 'Kra's ess'…'Kra's ess'…'nme'….He has Kira's eyes! He can see my name…'_

"We had already uncovered everything about you," Soichiro bluffed to hide the eyes Mello already knew about, "Give up, Mello. If your surrender, I won't kill you. If I write your name down in this book, you'll die," He flipped the book open and held a pen to the page, "Drop that switch and raise your hands. Ebony doesn't have to be hurt and you don't have to die. Now! Drop that switch!"

Mello laughed, "You can't threaten me! If you try to write my name down, I'll press the button."

"Do it, then," Soichiro taunted. Mello paused, "I'm prepared to lose my life. I'd happily give up my own life if that means you'd die as well."

"Stop trying to be a hero, Yagami," Mello said, all traces of arrogance or taunting gone as he shifted his grip on Ebony a little as she tried and failed to move, "You might be satisfied with that, but what about your men? You're going to sacrifice them too."

"They're my men, they're all prepared to face death," Soichiro said. He had complete faith in his men. He prayed that Mello would give in to his bluff, "I don't know how large that explosion of yours is going to be, but if there are going to be survivors, my fully equipped men have the best chance. If I hold on to the notebook, it shouldn't be damaged beyond use. To tell you the truth, we just want the notebook to disappear.

"Give it up, Mello," Soichiro said again, "The only way you'll live through this is to surrender. Drop that switch."

'_What are you doing, hurry and write his name down!'_ Light grit his teeth as he listened to his father's words, suddenly cursing his father's value on life, _'He's too dangerous, I don't know what he's thinking! Now's the time to kill him! Kill him right now!!'_

"You and your men may be alright with dying, Yagami," Mello responded, "But what about Ebony? Are you really going to sacrifice her as well as all your men? She has no armor, no weapons. She's barely even conscious. Your men have a chance of surviving, but if I blow up this building, she will surely die. Is that very fair to her?"

'_Damn it…Mello,'_ Ebony again tried to move and again failed in doing so, _'When I…can move he's….he's dead….'_

"Yagami," Mello kicked a drawer open, revealing a gun, "You've never killed anybody before, have you?"

Soichiro's pen moved.

"Stop it."

"Don't move!" Soichiro warned, "I only have to write down your last name! It'll take me less than a second! Give up and hand yourself over to us!"

'_No….Soichiro-san….'_ Ebony tried to mumble a warning, but her speech was too slurred, _'Don't…..You..deserve heaven….not Mu….'_

Mello's blue eyes shifted.

"I'm sorry, Yagami," Mello's frown deepened. He really didn't want to kill this man. He knew he was one of the better people he'd come across in several years, and he didn't deserve death.

'_Not everyone on the floor is necessarily dead. You thought you could survive by pretending to be dead, José…'_

Ebony saw it too.

"Sotchkio!"

There was nothing she could do as a man supposedly dead on the floor rolled over and started firing. The chloroform was clearing from her system a little, but not enough for her to do anything to help. The men outside started banging on the doors, alerted by the gunshots.

"José, get the notebook!" Mello commanded as he grabbed the mask Soichiro had dropped, dragging Ebony with him.

"Meo…" Ebony was trying to work up the energy to get mad at him.

"I-It's no use! He won't let go of the notebook!" José tugged on the Death Note but it wasn't coming loose, "Is he still alive?!"

José lifted his gun and held it to Soichiro's head.

"NO!!"

The task force broke in just as Ebony kicked the gun from the man's hand before he could shoot the Deputy Director. They shot the other man but paused when going to shoot Mello. He had Ebony held before him, using her as a human shield.

"It's all over, Mello," Aizawa said, "Drop that switch!"

Mello looked to the open door.

'_Damn it…I've got no choice…It's all or nothing…'_

_Click._

_**Boom!!**_

From a couple of blocks away, Matt and Tech were walking out of a Wendy's and whipped around at the sound of the explosion.

"SHIT!!"

"They must have been ambushed!" Tech said as they dropped their smoothies and bolted for the building, scared out of their minds for their friends, "Do you think they were in the monitor room?"

"We can only hope," Matt responded, "Mello would blow the place if he had absolutely no way out, but with Ebony there they're probably safe."

"I don't like 'probably'," Tech replied, forcing herself to run faster. In contrast to the stigma that the word 'genius' held, L wasn't the only Wammy kid with physical prowess.

"Shit," Matt grabbed Tech's hand and dragged her down to hide behind a wall that was still partially intact and he hissed to her, "_Police!_"

That was the real downside to being in the mafia. Even when your intentions were completely pure, like saving the lives of some friends, you still couldn't let yourself be seen by the law.

"Hurry, get an ambulance!"

"He got shot in the neck!"

"Get to the car!"

"Hurry, go!"

Once the car was gone, Tech and Matt sprung from their hiding spots, beginning to shift through the smoldering rubble. They were looking for anything. The scent of leather, a lock of white hair, anything that could tell them where their friends were.

"Mello? Ebony?" Matt called, "Hey! Anybody alive in there?!"

"Matt, stop moving," Tech held up a hand covered by a fingerless glove, straining her ears.

"I don't hear any-" Matt stopped, "Wait, I hear it too."

Someone was yelling.

"Ebony!"

Both computer geniuses started attacking a pile of rubble about ten feet away. The first thing they uncovered was a mass of slightly singed black feathers.

"What the-"

"It's Ebony, sweetheart," Tech said, not pausing in moving the rubble. She gasped when they were finally able to get them out.

Ebony was on top of Mello, a set of feathered wings held over them to protect them from the blast they had been left vulnerable to when the monitoring room's doors had been left open and the debris that had fallen from the ceiling when the building collapsed. Unfortunately, the limbs could only cover so much. Mello's leather clothing was torn, some burned to shreds, and the left side of the mask he'd taken from Soichiro was broken. His upper left arm, shoulder, left side of his neck, and the left side of his face were covered in burns.

Serious burns.

"Mello's hurt," Ebony said, stating the obvious, "Get some sheets to…to cover them till we can treat them…Get him somewhere clean….Could get infected."

"You sound like you're buzzed," Tech commented as she tried to get a wobbly Ebony to her feet, "Thought you hated alcohol."

"Chloroform," Ebony stated, shaking her head.

"Come on, Mello," Matt slung the blonde man's uninjured arm around his shoulders, "You can blow up a building. You can walk a little bit."

"…shut up….."

"He speaks. Good," Ebony shook her head, trying to fight off the lingering effects of the chloroform and fold in her uncooperative wings, "Means he'll live so I can kill him."

-oooOooo-

Despite Ebony's callous words, she looked after Mello diligently, never leaving his side. After being in the bare knuckled fights for so long, she was an expert of First Aid in her own right. While she'd never had to deal with burns this severe, she knew more or less of what to do. Matt and Tech stayed nearby as well, Matt worried sick over his best friend, practically his brother, and Tech did her best to comfort him.

"Ugh."

"Ah, you're awake, buddy!" Matt rushed over, grinning down at his friend, "You gave us quite the scare there. You've been out for two days. How are you feeling?"

Mello blinked his right eye slowly as his brain tried to catch up to the present. The pain didn't help his thought processes at all, but he was eventually able to remember the notebook, Yagami Soichiro, Ebony, and the explosion. He looked around, relieved to see that Ebony was unharmed, not wanting to even think about what L would have done to him had she been hurt.

"This might hurt a bit," Ebony reached forward and very gently let her fingertips come into contact with the scarred skin around his left eye. As careful as she could be, she pulled the closed eye open, biting her lip when Mello visibly winced, "Can you see?"

"Yeah," Mello answered, his normally harsh, commanding voice barely more than a whisper. He couldn't really feel much with the burned parts of his body. Well, that wasn't true. Some places were in agony while some places were completely numb.

'_Nerve damage,'_ He thought, recalling something he'd read a few years ago on burns and the damage they could cause.

"You're still going to be out of commission for a while," Ebony told him as she carefully rearranged some of the cold cloths covering his burns. The worst part of the whole thing, however, had been having to tug bits of debris out of his wounds with a pair of silver tweezers. Thank god he had been unconscious for that part, "You need to give your skin time to heal before stretching it, otherwise you'll just reopen them and make them worse."

They all sighed, Tech gripping Matt's hand harshly while Matt let his head rest against the wall. None of them had been sure if the blonde man was going to survive. He'd been really touch-and-go for the first eighteen hours after they'd found a safe place to crash after digging him and Ebony out of the collapsed building.

"Hey, Tech?" Ebony looked to the short haired woman, "Could I borrow your cell phone? I need to call Lawliet before he does something stupid."

"Not a problem," Tech dug her phone from her pocket and tossed it to the worn-looking Shinigami girl. Her features were almost broken and the circles under her eyes almost made it look like she'd recently been in a fight, "We've got things in here for now."

"Thank you," Ebony caught the phone and looked back to Mello, "I'll be right in the next room. If you need me, send Matt or Tech to get me."

She stood when Mello nodded and left the room, leaving the door cracked so she could hear what was going on. With slightly shaky fingers, Ebony dialed in a number, only waiting for half a ring before it was picked up.

"_Tech, what happened?"_ Ebony almost sobbed in relief from hearing her husband's smooth voice, _"What's going on? Are you all ok? Where's Ebony?"_

"Don't worry Lawliet," Ebony said, hearing an intake a breath and then a shaky sigh of relief, "I'm alright."

* * *

Author's Note: Now how was that for an exciting chapter? I was so eager to get to this part and funnily enough, I just wrote this all as it came to me. No pre-planning at all. Yay!

**warning746:** So this is how they escaped. Cool part is that the task force now views Ebony as a simple hostage rather than a co-conspirator with the mafia.

**HahynGirl:** I hope this chapter entertained you more than the last one. I'm sorry if it disappointed you.

**LittleKittyShaoMao:** Mello in pain paragraphs? What precisely do you mean?

**nekosoulreaper:** I will get into interactions between Ebony and Near. I haven't forgotten about that adorable albeit creepy kid. Glad you like Tech, but thank xlostinmyownworldx for her.

**Marisol Akyri: **Sorry for the cliffhanger. Wait, no I'm not. Hee!

**Mel1983:** Yeah, poor L and Ebony. At least L knows she's alive! The poor guy!

**xlostinmyownworldx:** Don't worry about her past sounding melodramatic. She's an orphan. It's kind of a rule for her life to be sad.

Please update for me!

-HaleyJo


	8. Secrets of Birth

Author's Note: This chapter is probably going to drive you guys nuts at the end. Hee!

* * *

**8. SECRETS OF BIRTH**

"_Don't worry Lawliet. I'm alright."_

All the breath in his body was expelled from his lungs. Lawliet slumped down in his chair from hearing his wife's sweet voice again after hearing nothing for two whole days after Mello's base was stormed. His long hands shook as he took in a shuddering breath.

"Ebony," He could barely speak, "Thank heaven. Are you injured?"

"_No, I'm fine. Don't worry about me. So are Matt and Tech, but I can't say the same for Mello,"_ Lawliet could hear the pain in her voice, _"He has third degree burns on his left arm, neck, and the side of his face. He's going to scar, but he's stable and conscious now. I'm so sorry I didn't call you sooner, but Mello's condition was critical and he's only just now woken up."_

"It's alright, Ebony. I love you," Lawliet made certain to tell her he loved her after fearing that he would never get to speak to her again, "Please come back to me."

"_As soon as Mello is able to move around without risk of infection, we'll hop a plane to return to Japan. I promise,"_ Lawliet breathed a bit easier from her words, _"I love you too, Lawliet."_

"I will make arrangements for you all to come here as soon as Mello is able," Lawliet promised in return, "Please stay safe and don't risk going out in public. The explosion is flooding the news."

"_That's our intentions…What?"_ Lawliet could hear people in the background. It sounded like Matt, _"Ok. Bring me some more towels and a bowl of cold water. Get something for him to drink, too. Sorry Lawliet,"_ Ebony returned her focus to him, _"I need to go. Mello's towels are warming up. I'll call you soon. I love you."_

"I love you," Lawliet replied before a dial tone replaced her voice. He sighed heavily and put his cell phone down onto the desk by his keyboard.

Things weren't going well at all. Two of his successors and his wife had nearly been killed, Yagami Soichiro had succumbed to his grievous injuries and passed on – he needed to tell Ebony that soon – Light had retrieved the Death Note, and Kira's word was now being spread all over the world through Demegawa on Sakura TV. Lawliet's thumb was being constantly gnawed on as he played with several sugar cubes instead of putting them in his now-cold coffee. What was he going to do? Staying out of this investigation seemed to only be causing more tragedies and unnecessary deaths.

"Daddy?"

Despite the tragedies that had taken place in the last week, Lawliet found that a grin was curling his lips as he turned to face the door to his room. Standing in the doorway was a tiny girl of about fifteen months old, one teeny-tiny hand rubbing one large, pink and red eye. Ink black hair lay in an adorable state of natural disarray about her little head, made even worse from tossing in her sleep. The blackness of her hair and the pale pink of her nightgown made her pale skin seem even paler.

"When Mommy get home?" She asked, "I miss Mommy."

"I miss her as well, Rem," Lawliet turned to face his daughter and let one of his legs fall to the floor. The little girl quickly approached him and lifted her arms so that he would lift her onto his lap, "Your mother should be home soon. Within the next few days."

"Why not now? I miss Mommy," Rem's lower lip trembled slightly as her tiny fingers dug into Lawliet's white shirt, "I want Mommy!"

"I know, love," Lawliet gently stroked her hair, the hair that had come from him, and encouraged the little girl to lean against his chest, "I promise that she will return to us soon. But you need to sleep now. Show your mother what a good little girl you've been while she was away."

"Yes! Rem a good girl," The tiny child was soon smiling and cuddling against her father's thin chest. Then she held a finger to her lips and turned her adorably large eyes to Lawliet and whispered, "Don tell Mommy we was awake."

"I won't tell if you won't," Lawliet whispered as well, grinning as his daughter yawned and nuzzled her head against him, clearly telling him that he was to be her pillow for the night. One of his long index fingers stretched out to stroke his daughter's pale cheek, the smile on his equally pale face refusing to leave. Of all the things Ebony had given him – love, devotion, life, happiness – this beautiful little life was by far the most extraordinary. Lawliet would never forget the day Ebony discovered that she was carrying a child within her womb…

_--_

_Ebony helped Lawliet to sit up and lean against the pillows, handing him a cup of water. Even though the event had passed several weeks ago, his body was still recovering some from being dead, so his energy levels were still rather low. Luckily, Roger had made sure that their room was somewhat isolated from the children so that Lawliet could recover in peace._

_Well, another reason was to avoid tainting the children whenever they decided to be intimate. Ebony smiled at her husband as he drank the water she'd given him before her lips lost their smile, her lower lip being pulled between her teeth._

"_Ebony?" She looked up at him, seeing his head tilted to the side a bit. Adorable! "Did everything go alright at the doctor's?"_

_Ebony felt her stomach twist itself in knots. A few weeks after arriving at the Wammy's House in England, the place in which Lawliet was raised, she had begun feeling quite ill, having to make frequent trips to the bathroom to rid herself of anything she'd managed to eat. She had finally gone to the doctor that day as Lawliet had asked – more like commanded – and was still mentally flipping out over what he'd told her. She still hadn't really worked out how she was going to break this to him, and she had just run out of time. Why couldn't Lawliet forget things just this once like a normal person?_

"_Lawliet," Ebony scratched the back of her head, glancing away from his penetrating gaze. She looked around the room to keep her eyes occupied, "Th-the doctor said I…he-he said that I…th-that I'm pr-pregnant."_

_The silence that reigned afterward was probably the longest silence of her life. She had never felt so nervous and was scared to look at him. What if he didn't want this? What was going to happen? This could ruin everything between them! She didn't know what she would do if she lost him again after only-_

_Lawliet suddenly leaned down and rested his cheek against her abdomen, his hands finding purchase on her hips. Ebony was startled into looking down at the top of his head, a small gasp pulled from her throat._

"_When will we be able to feel it move?" Lawliet asked. It was a dumb question since he was not unaware of the stages of pregnancy, but it was the first thing that had popped into his head._

"_S-so…you're happy then?" Ebony's smile began to come back, her hopes soaring for the heavens._

"_Of course," Lawliet moved his head back a little to replace it with his hand, splaying his fingers over the gentle curve of her belly. His grin was the widest she'd ever seen it except for when she had said she loved him for the first time, "You're going to carry my daughter or son. I never thought I'd ever be a father," He then looked up at her, his gaze curious though the adorably pure smile remained, "How is it that you are able to get pregnant? I thought you said you never started menstruating."_

"_I thought so too," Ebony ran her fingers through his hair, blissfully happy that Lawliet wanted this baby, "Shinigami can't reproduce, they can't even have sex. I guess that I just don't menstruate like humans, but I can still have children unlike Shinigami."_

"_Good," Lawliet placed his ear against her stomach again, closing his eyes as he listened to the blood rushing through her veins. The smile refused to leave his face as he nuzzled her abdomen, making her giggle from the faint tickling sensation._

'I'm going to be a father…_' He thought in amazement, liking the idea more and more as he rolled it around in his head._

_--_

Had Ebony been normal, her being pregnant wouldn't have come as such a surprise. While staying in the hotel in Japan, they hadn't spent their time simply staring at each other. Now that he thought of it, they hadn't ever gotten fully dressed again after disrobing each other that night until they had to leave for England. But since she didn't have a menstrual cycle, the thought of her being able to conceive had never crossed his mind.

Lawliet continued petting his daughter's hair. Never once in his life had he thought he would have a child, not to mention actually getting close enough to a female for even the chance of having a child, but he wasn't complaining. Creating a life with Ebony was by far the most incredible experience he had ever gone through, showing him how much he had been missing in life. He would never trade these experiences for anything.

"Sleep well, Rem," Lawliet moved his eyes back to his laptop and started typing with one hand, looking forward to when his wife would return to him and their daughter, and wishing Mello a speedy recovery.

-oooOooo-

Light frowned, resting his forehead against the back of his wrist. Something in his gut was telling him that there was something going on that he didn't know about. Now, he knew that Near and Mello were plotting his downfall at this very moment, but it was something more than that. He felt like something far more dangerous was bubbling up from the shadows, remaining hidden from his eyes no matter how much he searched for it.

What the hell had Ebony been doing at Mello's base? It couldn't be a coincidence. She had said that she had been working with people against Kira for the last two years, so perhaps Mello and his cohorts were those people. Did Near know her as well, then? Both Near and Mello had come from the same institution Watari, Quillish Wammy, had built to raise successors to the L name.

The rest of the task force still believed in Ebony's innocence, though. When they had burst in on the monitor room before Mello had blown up his base, they had seen Ebony kicking that criminal's gun from his hand before he could shoot Soichiro in an attempt to save him. So suggesting that Ebony was in on it was definitely out.

But just who the hell was this girl? How was it that she knew the things she did?

"Misa."

"Yes," The excited blonde turned to her lover eagerly, hoping to hear something sweet fall from his lips only to be disappointed by his next words.

"Are you sure nothing's changed about Ebony?" He asked. Misa almost felt jealous that he was focusing on Ebony – another very pretty woman – more than her, but she knew he didn't feel for her that way. She was like his little sister.

"Yeah. I'm sure-Oh!" Misa slapped her forehead, "Wait! There was something! Her name's changed."

"Her name?" Light turned to face her, seeing that she was completely serious. How was this possible? He could hear Ryuk cackling in the background.

"Yeah. Her name used to be Ebony Rose Accott; I remember it from before but now," Misa shrugged, "her name is Ebony Rose Lawliet. I guess I was just so excited to see she was alive that I forgot to tell you."

'_Stupid!'_ Light cursed in his head, _'How could she forget something so important?!'_

Light calmed himself down. Now wasn't the time to think about that. This could be an important clue. Ebony's last name had changed, and the only thing that could possibly do that was if she got married. He knew that legally changing her name wouldn't change what a Shinigami's eyes saw whether they were in a Shinigami's face or a human's face. He hadn't seen a ring, though…

'_No. She wouldn't wear a ring near me. She's too smart for that. She's protecting her husband, whoever he is,'_ Light shook his head and turned to his laptop. He started going through many search engines, typing in one thing.

'Lawliet.'

After searching and searching for about three hours, long after Misa had finally fallen asleep, he finally got a hit. It was an old newspaper clipping from 1981 in Winchester, England. It talked about a family with the surname 'Lawliet.'

A woman named Abegayle Moira Lawliet, age thirty, blonde hair and blue eyes.

A man named Kendall Otis Lawliet, age thirty-three, dirty blonde hair and brown eyes.

A little girl named Billie Ladonna Lawliet, age nine, pale blonde hair and blue eyes.

All were found dead in their home on February third of 1981, the women's throats slit and the man shot in the head. No one ever really discovered what had happened considering the lack of witnesses and good forensics in those days, but it was assumed that it was a break-in gone bad.

'_This doesn't make any sense,'_ Light looked through the records of the Lawliet family, _'They are all dead, but Ebony now has the same last name. The name is too uncommon for this to be merely a coincidence. Ebony has to have married into the family, but to whom? Ebony is straight, and Billie Lawliet is dead anyway.'_

Light thought and thought, going over the family's autopsy reports and the article of their deaths numerous times. There was something he was missing. This was 1981, so…

Light gasped quietly.

'_An illegitimate child!'_

That had to be it! The mother, Abegayle, must have had an affair and bore her extramarital lover's child! Children from an unmarried couple were more frowned upon back then than they were now, especially when it was a bastard child. To avoid the shame that would undoubtedly have marked and blacklisted their family forever, they must have kept the pregnancy and birth a secret. He doubted anyone ever knew that Abegayle bore a second child.

'_Whoever this person is, Ebony must have met and married him over the past two years. She was too much of a recluse to have met him before,'_ Light shook his head, _'There are no records of anyone named Lawliet after the Lawliet family was murdered since by all means, the second child didn't exist, so I can't find this guy to threaten her with. However, I _can_ let her know that I know she is married to someone named Lawliet. That should catch her off guard quite nicely.'_

Light grinned, a dark chuckle slipping past his lips. Maybe things could be swung back in his favor after all.

* * *

Author's Note: Ah! More secrets! I just love tormenting you all with those! It makes me smile. Hee!

**LittleKittyShaoMao:** Yeah, a lot of stuff was inspired by her. Oh, and thanks for clarifying. I'll see what I can do.

**xlostinmyownworldx:** Yeah, I think people liked that chapter since it was so fast-paced. I hope this one is good too.

**Orohippus:** Yes, poor Lawliet just about lost his mind. At least he had little Rem to keep him somewhat sane. I love baby Rem!

**Hao'sAnjul:** I'm glad you liked that chapter after so many slow-paced ones. I hope this one keeps you entertained.

**Marisol Akyri:** No Shinigami protected them. Ebony has wings of her own. No worries. I'll explain that some more soon.

**HahynGirl:** Does this chapter satisfy you too? I certainly hope so. Enjoy!

**Timekeeper101:** Yes, Lawliet knows she's safe now. I hope baby Rem was a good touch. I'd always planned for them to have a little girl since so many people seem to insist on giving L a son. I thought this would be a smidge more original.

Please review for me. And now we kind of sort of maybe but not really know who Billie was. Remember when L talked to Watari on the roof back in chapter 'I Love You' from _Rules Set in Love: Notebook 1_? Go look if you can't remember. You'll see what I'm talking about.

-HaleyJo


	9. Holding Hands

Author's Note: Sorry I haven't updated recently. Like I said, school will be taking up more of my writing time. I've also just had writer's block and confusion issues. I had to write out the whole timeline again like in Notebook 1. Anyway, I hope this chapter was worth the wait. Again, sorry.

* * *

**9. HOLDING HANDS**

Halle Linder shook her head at the screen, watching as the timid vice-president of the oh-so-powerful United States of America announced that, with the death of the mafia on their shores and their president, they would accept Kira and do nothing to stand in his way.

"What's going to happen to us now…?"

"We're going to be dissolved," Near said as he stood among his many toys and Lego-buildings, "Thanks to that chicken-hearted president…no, he's not even a chicken. He's not even a maggot."

'_Ridiculous!'_ Near thought vehemently, _'Accepting Kira is out of the question.'_

"Near, are you serious about dissolving the SPK?" Halle asked, each of her hands cradling the opposing elbow.

"Yes. This country's justice system has completely collapsed," Near answered from inside a ring of train tracks, looking to his right. He never did truly meet people's eyes when he was talking to them, "And I'm not just joking when I say that dissolving this organization may actually prove to be fruitful. Oh course, I will continue to try to capture Yagami Light with the information from two years ago and Ebony's eyes from inside the Japanese task force, but it will be difficult since we can't expect any direct help from Japan, or the American police.

"Including me, there are four of us left. The spy leaked the names and faces of the others. Well, it could have been just the faces. Either way," Near continued, almost sounding like he was rambling, though it was far from it. He was merely voicing his thoughts for the small team that worked under him as he curled his hair around his finger, "they were all killed by the notebook. That is irrefutable."

"That's nothing new…" Anthony Rester said.

"I want all of you to put yourselves in Mello's position," Near blew right over the big man's words as though he'd never spoken them at all. The only reason no one called him out on his rudeness was because they were used to it by now, "The spy has given you the names and faces of the SPK members. Would you kill all of them? Would you kill all of them knowing that there will be some members of the SPK who won't die?"

"…No, one or two…" Anthony answered after a moment of silence, "I'd at least keep one of them alive."

"That's what I think as well," Near agreed.

"So we're going to purposefully disband and wait for Mello to contact one of us?"

"It's not a bad idea. The chances are pretty high…" Near adjusted the speed of the train that was circling around him, "And it will be easy to get the president to announce that the SPK is disbanding.

"Mello is all alone right now. He probably has no one to rely upon….No," Near contradicted himself, "Ebony is surely with him at the moment, so he's not completely alone, along with two others at the most, but I don't think he's abandoned his desire to be number one. Since he wants to get Kira before I do," Near sort of looked over at the people standing behind him. They could at least see his black eyes, "he'll definitely want the information we have. Though, he may try to get it from Ebony first…"

"But judging from the way Mello's been acting, won't it be dangerous to come in contact with him?" Anthony asked.

"Very dangerous," Near said, not sugarcoating the fact at all, "So when the time comes I want you all to do as he says. If Ebony is with him you may be safer, but give him all the information we have anyway, including that I have his photograph. The next move is up to him…Those willing to take part in this plan are to wear a wire and come to the headquarters every day from their former residences. Actually…I'd want you to put cameras in your rooms, too."

"B-But even if we give all the information to Mello, won't he try to kill us so we won't tell you about him?" Anthony protested.

"That may very well happen. But I have faith in your excellent skills. If you're scared, you don't have to participate. But please don't leave the headquarters. I'm scared, so I'm not going to go outside," Near admitted plainly, still watching his train circle around him over and over in a counterclockwise direction, "What do you think? Especially you, Halle Linder."

"Me?"

"Let me say this plainly. Other than Rester and me, Mello should have known everybody's information," Near started twirling a lock of his hair, "But Mello decided not to kill you. If I were him, I would choose to get the information from you, a woman. If I had to meet you face-to-face, there is a better chance of escaping or overcoming you because of out physical differences. And the fact that it would be unlikely, even for the SPK, to invade a woman's privacy using wires and cameras."

The only reason Halle wasn't offended by his words was that she knew he was merely stating facts, not being sexist. He was also just right anyway. Women were physically weaker than men. They just didn't have the same upper body strength usually required to fight against a man.

"S-So you're certain that Mello will contact us?"

"No…the chances are sixty-forty," No one in the room knew about his and L's trick of stating percentages at much lower than they really were, "And if the contact takes place: seventy percent chance for Linder, twenty-five percent chance for Gevanni, and five percent chance for Commander Rester."

"I-I don't mind doing it," Gevanni agreed. Although still quite young, his conviction to his job was strong.

"Ok, I'll do it too," Halle agreed.

"Commander Rester, we're now an informal organization. I don't mind if it is from the general public, but I want you to gather powerful people who are completely against Kira," Near stood from his ring of toys, "You can use as much money as you need."

"But if they're from the public, it's going to be hard for me to determine if they're trustworthy," Anthony replied, "I'll need time to investigate them."

"We don't need to trust each other," Near stated as though that was an obvious fact, "From now on, we're going to have no choice but to become an underground organization that strives to get rid of Kira. We just need people that are willing to join such an organization, and follow the orders of a boss whose face or voice they don't know. The more people they have, the better it will be. That is the kind of battle we're going to be fighting from now on. Now's the time to leave, if you want."

-oooOooo-

As it turned out, none of them opted to leave the organization. The only one who left was Halle, who only left to return to her apartment.

The second Halle Linder entered her apartment, she held a silencing finger to her crimson-painted lips. Behind her door, Mello was holding a gun to her head, Ebony by his side. Mello was a bit confused but understood once Halle mentioned to Near that she would be removing her wire so she could take a shower.

"Near came to the conclusion that you would try to contact me," Halle said from behind the shower curtain, completely unflustered by Mello's presence there, "But I don't think he knew that we had already met."

"It's so like Near to think that way," Mello sighed angrily as he viciously bit into his chocolate bar. Ebony was facing away from the curtains, leaning against the wall with her and Mello's shoulders nearly touching and drumming her fingers against said wall.

"I didn't expect you to bring Ebony along, though," Halle commented, "Does L know?"

"I'm not supposed to leave her alone," Mello stated harshly.

"He means that I insisted on accompanying him in case he had any trouble with his injuries. He really shouldn't be moving so much just yet," Ebony directed her eyes to him as she said this, giving him a disapproving look that he ignored completely.

"Injuries aside, you don't have the notebook anymore, so all you can threaten me with is that gun, right? You can't control me, and if you use the gun to kill me, it's only going to make it easier to track you down. I'm going to have cameras in all my rooms after this. Excluding the bathroom. So what are you going to do? Live in the bathroom?" Ebony choked slightly with Halle's next words, "It's ok with me. I don't mind having you around."

"Halle, whose side are you on?" Mello asked as Halle stepped out of the shower, grabbing a towel to dry herself off, "Mine or Near's?"

"I already told you a week ago, didn't I?" Halle sighed as she began to dry her long blonde hair, "I'm on nobody's side. You, Near, and I all want to capture Kira. We're all after the same goal. So what are you going to do? Are you going to run away?"

Ebony bit her lip, wondering if this woman knew she was pushing buttons that best remained unpushed.

"If you do, I'm going to tell Near that you were hiding in my bathroom, and I met you," Halle continued, "Or do you want to meet me later somewhere else?"

"Halle, go back to headquarters," Mello commanded.

"What? I've got no reason to go back there right now."

"Make one up," Mello stated as he held the cocked gun to Halle's forehead, "Go back."

"Ok, ok…stop pointing that thing at me."

Ebony giggled as Halle went to get dressed, earning an odd look from Mello.

"I think she likes you," Ebony giggled more at the irritated look Mello's scarred face soon formed, "Why else would she walk around in front of you buck naked and dripping wet without so much as batting an eye?"

Mello ignored her teasing words, pulling his black feather-lined hood up over his head again.

Meeting with Near definitely turned into an event to get one's adrenaline flowing. Ebony had been worried for a moment that she would have to incapacitate Mello to keep him from shooting Near in the back of the head, but he lowered his gun on his own. Mello ended up revealing to Near that one of the Death Note's rules was fake, though he refused to state which one. Near let him go then, knowing he would probably be of use later on. Neither of the competitive males protested when Ebony opted to stay behind with Near, hoping to return to her family as soon as possible. She made sure to tell Mello to tell Tech and Matt goodbye for her.

She doubted he would remember.

"It's good to see you again, Ebony," Near stated as he moved a few of the action figures he was playing with. He held out his left hand, urging the girl closer.

"Same to you, Near," Ebony grinned as she sat down beside him, allowing him to hold her hand. There was absolutely no difference in the shades of their skin, "How goes things here?"

"The same as anywhere else," Near responded, "Rester, Linder, Gevanni, this is Ebony, L's wife. Ebony, this is the SPK."

"Hm, fewer members than I would have thought," Ebony shrugged, "But then, Mello did have some of the mafia bump off several of your agents, didn't he?"

"You're L's wife?" Rester questioned, looking between the two on the floor, "Are you related to Near?"

"Nope. No relation. Our looks are merely coincidental," Ebony smiled, "He is kind of like my little brother now, though, which is good. I never had any siblings. Near," Ebony returned her attention to the boy holding her hand, "Can I get into contact with L from here? I need to get back to him and Rem. I really shouldn't have been gone this long to begin with."

"Yes. You need to be sent home. Your daughter probably misses you greatly," Near stood and moved toward the monitors, tugging Ebony with him. Once situated in one of the chairs in a similar fashion to L, he brought up a specific connection on the screen and hit ENTER.

"_Yes?"_ A garbled voice came through the speakers, _"What is it, Near?"_

"Ebony is here," Near answered, twirling a lock of snowy hair around his finger, "She wants to come home."

"_Ah! Good,"_ L sounded delighted, _"I trust that she is well?"_

"Yep," Ebony grinned and let her chin rest in one upturned palm, "Well enough, L. I'm gonna hang here until I get the chance to come home. No worries!"

"_Until then,"_ Lawliet then cut the connection, beginning to make the appropriate arrangements to get his wife back into his arms. The fact that she was with Near now rather than Mello, Matt, and Tech made him feel much better.

"Ebony."

"Aye?" Ebony turned to the white haired boy holding her hand.

"Mello's tip about the fake rules, which ones are they?" Near asked, beginning to play with her fingers similarly to how L did, except L only did that when he was nervous about something.

"They have to be the ones in the back," Ebony responded, tilting her head to the side slightly, "Ryuk was only in this for kicks, so I doubt he would have put in any more rules that would force him to exert the effort of moving to the back cover. He's lazy like that. I also was able to chat with Sidoh for a while, the Shinigami who was the original owner of the Death Note Ryuk had stolen from him to give to Light. I got him to tell me that they were fake. There're no rules against a Shinigami telling someone like me more about the Death Note."

"I see," Near tugged slightly on her middle finger, "Then we must see these rules and which ones are on the back cover. When you return to L, you will ask him to remember the back cover rules and tell me which ones they are."

"That's not necessary," Ebony waved a hand dismissively, "I know what they are. 'If the person using the Note fails to consecutively write names of people to be killed within 13 days of each other, then the user will die'."

"It sounds like a believable enough punishment to be attached to such a murder weapon," Near mused, "But it is almost too perfect to be real. What are the other ones?"

"Just one," Ebony shrugged, "'If you make this Note unusable by tearing it up or burning it, all the humans who have touched the Note till then will die'."

"Yet another too-perfect rule. It ensures the notebook's continued existence regardless of how many people wish for its destruction," Near nodded, "This will turn out to be quite useful indeed."

-oooOooo-

People were so easy to string along. So easy that it was almost disappointing that they would do as they were told with such little resistance. Guiding the big man named Mogi was no work at all as Mello led him exactly to where he wanted him.

The SPK's base.

Ebony glanced over when Halle's cell phone went off in her pocket. Her golden eyes suddenly widened once she placed the phone's speaker to her ear. She then gave the phone to Near, telling him it was Mello on the other line.

"_Near, a man from the Japanese task force is going to show up at your place very soon,"_ Ebony could hear Mello's voice from her seat by Near. She wondered how his burns were doing, _"He's a well-built man, about 6'2"."_

"Mogi Kanzo," Ebony stated as Mello continued giving instructions to Near, "He is a very big man. Not fat, just very solid. He could probably kick anyone's ass should he need to."

"Near, the man is here," Gevanni said from his place by one of the many monitors, "He only has a cell phone, and no cameras or bugs."

"Let that man in please," Near said as Halle carried out the request. He didn't turn around when Mogi actually entered the room, "Hello, pleased to meet you. I'm Near."

Mogi gaped at the small person crouched in the middle of the floor. He hadn't expected Near to be like this. But then again, Ryuzaki had been quite a shock himself, hadn't he? Ebony's presence there shocked him as well. Hadn't she been held captive by Mello? And why was she holding Near's hand? Was there something more than a coworker relationship between them?

"Please sit down," Near asked, "There's a lot of things I want to ask you about."

Mogi stayed silent during the interrogation and Ebony followed his lead. She knew that Mello and Near were simply making a show of not knowing Kira's identity by asking these questions. It was a smart move, and it meant that Light could most likely hear them right now. She needed to bite her tongue, otherwise Light would also know that she was here, which could be potentially dangerous to her family. Though she knew that her presence here wouldn't lead him anywhere near her Lawliet, she didn't want to take any chances with her beloved's life.

She did, however, admire Mogi in his ability to keep silent. He hadn't said a single word in two days and he barely moved beyond eating and using the bathroom. He was obviously a very strong man not just physically, but mentally, and his loyalty deserved admiration as well.

A sudden ruckus outside drew their attention near the end of the second day. A look at the monitors recording the events outside the building told them that a mob had been gathered by Kira's spokesperson Demegawa, that sleazy man who ran Sakura TV back in Japan. He was riding in a helicopter, trying to get the mob to attack in teams, which was highly improbably considering most of the people out there were just here for the one act of mindless destruction that Kira wouldn't punish them for.

"Near, if we stay here, we're going to be dragged out," Halle stated from where she stood by Mogi's chair. Rester agreed with her quickly, thinking they may need to bring in extra men to escape. Light's contacting them was a bit of a surprise, though.

"_What's the problem, Near?"_ Light's distorted voice came through the speakers. Near and Ebony could hear the arrogance underlying his tone, _"I knew that Mello sent our investigator Mogi to your place, and we asked him to remain silent while we listened to what you had to say, in order to figure out if you were worthy of our trust and cooperation, but if this continues on, Mogi will be killed. Is this a plan by Mello to get rid of the SPK? Or was the SPK so poorly organized that even the public was able to find out where your hideout was?"_

'_Damn it, he's lying through his teeth…'_ Near thought as he snapped the head off his robot action figure. His only outlet was to taunt Light by calling him Kira and stating evidence to that fact while the rest of the task force could hear. He was certain that this would work quite well in causing Light's associates to mistrust him.

Ebony clenched at her hair and bit her lip. How had they been found?! It was obvious that Light had discovered the SPK's base somehow. Maybe he had a tracker in Mogi's cell phone. Yes, that made sense. Using the tracker, he had been able to pinpoint their location and make Demegawa arrange this mob to drag them out so he could have Misa learn their names and kill them. If that happened, the rest of the task force would die also, just as Near said, since the following events would completely rouse their suspicions, thus making them useless to him. Only she would be left alive…

…and dragged off by the crazed mob as a person against Kira, against God. She didn't even want to think about what they would do to her in that situation. She might never get to see her husband and baby girl again…

"Distraction," Ebony whispered to Near just softly enough so that Mogi's cell phone wouldn't pick up on her voice for Light to hear, "We need a distraction. Something, anything, or we'll never make it out of here. You'd all die-"

"And you would be taken hostage since Kira can't kill you," Near finished for her, "That's only the best-case scenario. It would probably be worse. However, we can use the fact that these people aren't organized to our advantage. Let's do it. We should be prepared. It's going to be fun."

Ebony snorted at that while they all dressed in riot squad gear except for Rester, who had a red Kira banner wrapped around his arm and his wrist chained to Mogi's to make it look like he was being arrested. It took her a bit, but Ebony was finally able to roll her hair up with Halle's help so it wouldn't show from under her helmet. The anti-Kira people they'd hired earlier would act as the outside riot squad, thus enabling them to escape in plain view.

"Let's go. We'll have no problems walking straight out through the front entrance now," Near said as he stood with his favorite robot toys in his arms, "We can sneak Mr. Mogi's cell phone into someone's pocket outside."

"Ooh! I can do that!" Ebony plucked Mogi's cell phone from where it had been left on the counter, "Or I could just crush it. Can I do that? Please?"

"As you wish," Near replied, watching as Ebony grinned and crushed the phone in her small hand.

"Ok. Now we can go," Ebony said as she shook the remains of the phone from her hand, "You're right, Near. This _is_ fun."

* * *

Author's Note: I hope this chapter was worth the wait. I rewrote this chapter probably five times already and I still can't say I'm completely happy with it, but oh well. Hopefully the next chapters will be easier. Like I said, the timeline wasn't very clear in my head, but it's better now.

**LittleKittyShaoMao:** Yes, a kid for Ebony and L. I always thought L would make a cool dad since he's so childlike himself but still almost creepily smart.

**HayhnGirl:** Yeah, a kid for them isn't too surprising, but oh well. And yeah, L's past is sad, but don't make assumptions.

**Timekeeper101:** I'd always wanted to give L a daughter rather than a son like most people did. And we'll learn more about Billie pretty soon.

**Mel1983:** L's story of his past isn't over yet. I'll reveal everything very soon.

**Lunarobi Pride:** I'm glad you like my story so much. Ebony too. I hope this will keep you interested until it's over.

**Hao'sAnjul:** I understand the addiction to fanfiction, but make sure you're getting enough sleep for your ridiculously early classes. Falling asleep in class is no picnic since it makes you miss things. I've only ever fallen asleep in class once, but it was for 15 whole minutes. I was mortified!

**Lady of Dreams and Nightmares:** Yeah, Rem would be like 1/4 Shinigami, but I'm not too sure exactly what she can do yet and whether or not she had immunity from the Death Note too. I haven't decided yet.

**MythCreatorWriter:** I'll explain the bells soon. I know the bell thing was just in the anime, but I was able to tie it in real well with L's still-hidden past. Don't worry. I'm getting to it.

**warning746:** I don't really understand why that line was so funny, but I'm glad it made you laugh. I'm looking forward to when Light tells Ebony he knows she's married too. It should be fun!

**Alexandritee:** "OMGZNOWAYSEQUEL"? I'm assuming that means I'm still doing pretty good. You're funny!

Please review for me! And tell me of any pictures you'd like to see. They don't have to be scenes directly from the story, either. You can make them up too, if you want. I don't know when I'll get them up somewhere, though. I'm trying to figure out how to copyright them so that no one can copy and steal them. That would suck, big time. I'm very possessive of my work.

-HaleyJo


	10. He Knows

Author's Note: Yay! Positive reviews! I love those! Well, not _love_, but you know what I mean. Thank you all and I hope this one is good too!

* * *

**10. HE KNOWS**

Ebony hummed gently in her seat as she spun in circles, trying to entertain herself. She wanted to see her husband and little girl again. She missed them so much! It was like a physical pain.

'_Oh, wait. That's the Death note,'_ Ebony stopped spinning and stumbled for a moment when she stood up, _'I keep forgetting that I'm Lawliet's Shinigami according to the rules. You'd think I'd figure that out by now.'_

She glanced over when Gevanni's phone rang. It was the number Near had given to the task force earlier, so it had to be one of them. And if she had to take a guess, it was probably….

"Near here," Near said as Gevanni held the phone to his ear while the white haired boy stacked dice, "Will you come here under the condition that you won't tell the Japanese task force out whereabouts? Of course, that is after we make sure you are not Kira, or one of Kira's spies."

"_Very well."_

"Score!" Ebony giggled to herself, earning an odd look from Gevanni, "I knew it was Aizawa! I've always liked that guy."

"Also, there is one more thing I must tell you," Near continued as though Ebony had never spoken, "Mr. Mogi is alive. I lied to give incentive to those people like you."

"_Lied…?"_ Aizawa frowned, wondering if he could trust him. He understood his reasoning since he never would have contacted him without Mogi's death as a motive but still…_ "Then, can I talk to Mogi?"_

"Yes."

Gevanni moved and held the phone to the silent man's ear.

"It's Mogi."

"_Mogi…."_ Aizawa sighed in relief, realizing that he hadn't lost yet another person to this insane investigation, _"Mogi, I'm going over there right now. And I'm going to listen to what they have to say and then tell them everything I can."_

"Yes…I think that would be a good idea," Mogi replied.

"So you _can_ talk," Near marveled from his chair in front of his dice, "Very impressive, Mogi."

"Hee, hee! You've earned Near's respect, Mogi!" Ebony giggled, grinning at the man, "Kudos to you! That's not an easy thing to do, I'll have you know."

-oooOooo-

Aizawa shifted his sore feet slightly as he stood outside a phone booth in the cold. He suddenly missed his old hairstyle since it had helped somewhat in keeping his head warm.

'_Yagami Light is Kira…That is what L believed. And Near, who grew up at the Wammy's House as L's heir, also believes that. Ebony does too, and says that she always knew but couldn't prove it…'_ Aizawa glanced down at his watch, also thinking of how the 13-Day rule was the only thing cementing Light and Misa's innocence, _'Near told me to call him from this phone booth at 3:00PM…'_

Suddenly, a car pulled up and stopped just beside him by the curb. The tinted window rolled down just enough for the person inside to confirm that he was Aizawa.

"I'm Gevanni from the SPK," Said the dark haired man wearing sunglasses, "Please get in the car."

Once inside, Gevanni handed Aizawa a set of metal glasses. He had originally thought that they were sunglasses, but he found that it was actually a blindfold. Gevanni apologized, but Aizawa understood. Neither of them trusted the other at this point, it was impossible for them to. Near instructed Gevanni to drive around randomly for about two hours so that it would be impossible for Aizawa to know where they were.

"I'm in pain," Ebony grumbled as she rubbed her shoulder blades, "Near, can I go to another room? I need to stretch…"

"I see. By all means," Near waved her off, knowing instantly why she couldn't do so while in view of the others.

Ebony sighed in relief as she finally shut herself in a private room, kneeling down and clasping her hands together atop her knees. As a shiver coursed up her spine and her head tilted back, she recalled the first time she'd ever shown someone her wings. It had been the day after she learned of Lawliet's survival, the first morning she woke up nestled comfortably in his arms two years ago…

_--_

_Ebony woke late the next morning due to the sun falling across her closed lids, which she squinted at in irritation for it waking her up. It took her a moment to regain her senses, especially with that odd, rhythmic thumping sound in her ear. Were her pillows supposed to make that noise?_

_Her face suddenly turned a deep shade of red as memories of the night before flooded her mind, causing her to become aware of the dull ache between her legs, but that was much more preferable to the ache that had been in her heart. She took a deep breath and let it out slowly as she shyly glanced up at L, whose narrow waist her arms were snared around. He was awake of course, watching her with that piercing stare of his. She immediately felt self-conscious and turned away, her face burning even more._

"_Do you regret it?"_

"_Huh?" Ebony looked up at him again, her blush fading slightly in the wake of her confusion._

"_Do you regret it?" L asked again as he stared at the ceiling. The only thing betraying his unease was how his fingers were skittering nervously up and down her upper arm. That caused Ebony to smile._

"_No, not at all. It's just…new. However," She giggled slightly, "You seem even more exhausted than before, L."_

_L smiled down at her, "I imagine I will always be tired after making love to you, Ebony."_

_Butterflies went crazy in her stomach at his wording. He imagined he _willalways_ be tired after making love to her. That meant that this was without a doubt far from a one-time-only thing, not that she thought it would be. She grinned and snuggled closer to him, elated when his hand came to rest on her back near her shoulder blades._

_Doing so caused L to remember something._

"_Ebony?" She grunted slightly to show she was listening, "I've been meaning to ask, but other things obviously kept getting in the way."_

_Ebony grunted again, telling him to get to the point._

"_During your examination in the hospital after leaving the bare knuckled fighting again, several scans were performed to check for any fractures or internal bleeding and other such things. While you had a surprisingly small amount of serious damage, the scans showed something else quite interesting," L looked down at her to watch her reaction, "It seems that you have two fully functioning sets of scapulas, something I noticed but forgot about during Amane Misa's video response to Kira. Did you know that?"_

_Ebony stopped breathing for a second and pressed her lips together. Even though she knew she could bare her soul to this man without fear, she was still somewhat scared since this pertained to her Shinigami heritage._

"_I did," Ebony replied softly, the hand against his chest curling into a nervous fist, "They're from my mother, Rem."_

"_Ah. I see," L said, immensely curious, "Wings?"_

"_Yeah, though I've never used them to fly," Her voice had a sort of wistful, dreamy tone to it, "I have to stretch them out every now and then. I'm just lucky that the cell I was in during my confinement wasn't wider than my wingspan, or I would have unfurled them to stretch. Believe me," She giggled slightly, nervously, "having my wings tucked in for fifty-three days is no picnic!"_

"_Interesting," L commented, "May I see them?"_

_Ebony sighed, drumming her fingers against his bare chest for a moment before sitting up, bringing the sheets with her to give her some modesty. L sat up as well, leaning against the pillows with some of the bed sheets draped over his lap. Taking a deep breath and clamping her fingers tightly onto the sheets covering her chest, Ebony bent her head forward slightly and closed her eyes._

_L watched carefully, his wide-eyed stare transfixed on the bizarre phenomenon he was witnessing. Her shoulders twitched slightly and he could hear a strange cracking sound before two somethings began rising from her back. He followed them with his eyes as they grew longer and longer. He was momentarily sidetracked by the euphoric look on her face before his gaze was drawn back to her wings as they unfurled, stretching out and away to their limits._

_L knew his mouth was open slightly, but he didn't quite care. The white bones in her wings could be seen clearly, along with the small, clawed thumb at the highest joint. They greatly resembled a bat's wings and looked to be powerful limbs. Ebony then folded one wing forward and he was met with a sea of ink black feathers, which would explain why the thin membrane between the bones was dark rather than white like the rest of her skin._

_With the sun shining behind her like that, she looked like a celestial being sent down to Earth by God himself._

"_What do you think?" Ebony asked, a nervous waver at the end of her sentence. She was trying to smile, act like this was no big deal, but her smile was as shaky as her voice._

_L reached forward hesitantly, carefully allowing his fingertips to ghost along the black feathers and quickly infatuated with their silky texture. He then felt around the bone, touching the delicate membrane that coated the other side of her wing. Her wing twitched slightly and he registered that they were very sensitive. The thumb of his other hand was soon at his mouth, the nail being gnawed on as his fingertips brushed over the thin, soft skin._

"_How extraordinary!" L smiled widely, his normally dull eyes dancing with a childlike excitement, "I must say that I'm quite jealous, Ebony. It has been mankind's dream to fly since antiquity, and here you are! The embodiment of that dream! And yet you say you've never flown? How sad."_

"_Well, it's not like I could ever fly around downtown Tokyo, you dork," Ebony reminded him, "I think one or two people might have noticed that."_

"_Indeed. We shall have to go somewhere where that won't be a problem," L decided, watching as her wings moved slightly as she straightened up, no longer feeling so nervous. He reached out a hand to her, enticing her back into his arms with little effort while brushing the sheet away from her so there was nothing but skin between them. Ebony sighed happily as she snuggled against him, feeling one long hand petting her hair and then moving to stroke the nearest wing, obviously unable to contain his curiosity, but she didn't mind._

_Ebony then thought of something, surprised it hadn't occurred to her before, "When did you come back?"_

"_Promise not to hit me?" L hedged, winding his fingers around her wrists as he spoke just to be on the safe side._

"_The only thing that would make me hit you right now is if you rolled me over again," Ebony rolled her eyes, "I'm tired."_

_A small smile peeked at his lips before he answered her, "I wasn't dead for very long, actually. Everything was very fast. But I needed to leave you to grieve long enough for Yagami Light to think you were just starting to move on once your spirits raised again," He then cupped her face in his hands, seeing the hurt look that had taken residence there from him allowing her to believe he was dead for sixteen days, almost two whole weeks, "Please forgive me, but it was necessary. It killed me to see you suffering like that and all I wanted to do every time I saw you was kiss away your tears every time they marred your beautiful face. I am so sorry that you had to suffer like that, but I promise you that I will make up for it as best as I can."_

_Ebony let out a slow breath, smiling gently. No one had ever said such sweet things to her and his words sent butterflies dancing through her abdomen. She leaned in to kiss him again, whispering a soft thank you just before their lips connected._

"_Oh, I almost forgot," Ebony pulled back but remained close to him, deliberately letting her lips graze his as she spoke. It was partially because she wanted to see how he'd react to the unusually bold move on her part, but most of it was because she wanted to distract him in the hopes of loosening his stubborn tongue, "I shared my name. I think it's only fair you share yours. It's perfectly safe since Kira believes you're dead and I'm a wonderful secret-keeper."_

_L's eyes drifted half-closed as he traced his fingertips up and down her upper arms. It was quite amusing how two people who treated physical contact like it was some deadly disease couldn't keep from touching one another at every chance they got. It was also quite amazing how quickly Ebony had learned to use her sensual appeal against him. He went over her words, rolled around the pros and cons in his mind, before lifting one hand to where her skull met her neck and pulled her down, nipping her ear gently before whispering only two things._

"_L Lawliet."_

_--_

Ebony giggled. That had also been the day Lawliet had revealed his name to her, which was the greatest act of trust he could have ever shown her. Kind of like baring your throat to something with fangs, his name being his throat and her knowledge of it being the fangs. She groaned slightly as she stretched her wings, feeling the slight pops and creaks that came with having them cramped up for so long. The last time she'd opened her wings was when she'd protected herself and Mello from the explosion sixteen days ago. She usually liked to do so once a week, sometimes more since Rem liked touching the silky feathers, but she hadn't really gotten the chance lately due to lack of adequate space or risk of someone seeing.

Once she'd finally worked all the kinks out of her neglected wings, she carefully drew them back out of sight, her hair and clothes working wonders to keep her double shoulder blades from showing. Everyone but those at the Wammy's House would see it as a mere deformity, but she didn't want to draw any more attention to herself than she already did. She returned to the main room just as Aizawa was brought in, relieved to hear Mogi's voice in person rather than from over the phone. There always was the slight chance that the words had been recorded beforehand to make him think he was alive.

"Nice to meet you, Mr. Aizawa. I'm Near," He introduced himself in the same way he had to Mogi, back turned and all.

"It's not much of a 'nice to meet you' when I have this blindfold on, you know," Aizawa replied, cringing slightly at the sarcasm that had laced his voice against his will. He heard someone snort, trying to cover laughter, but had no idea who it was.

"Well, if you can answer a couple of questions truthfully, then I think we'll be able to take that off," Near replied, completely indifferent to the sarcasm.

"Oh, be nice!" Aizawa jumped at the voice he recognized and felt small hands trying to rid him of the blindfold, "You can trust Aizawa-san, Near. He's a good man and is just trying to seek justice in the name of Ukita Hirokazu, the first task force member to be killed by Kira. The second Kira, actually, but it had been in Kira's name, so it's the same thing."

Aizawa was shocked to be staring into a pair of familiar pink and red eyes once his blindfold was removed. He actually jumped back a couple of steps in his surprise. Ebony pouted as she quit standing on her tiptoes to reach his face and rocked back on her heels.

"Oh, come on, Aizawa-san. I'm not _that _hideous," Ebony rolled her eyes and leaned against the wall with her arms crossed, "You could at least act like you're glad I'm still alive."

"But…but you were Mello's hostage," Aizawa replied once he was able to talk again.

"Sort of," Ebony shrugged, "He did use me as a shield in the end by drugging me with chloroform – the little twit – but I went to him of my own free will to try to get him to use less aggressive tactics in catching Kira. Obviously, that didn't work out so good, but I tried, at least."

"Th-these people…Near and Mello….you've known them both. They're the people you've been working with against Kira," Aizawa said as the pieces all fell into place for him in that instant.

"Bingo. I went to the Wammy's House after L's…death," Ebony cringed around the word and ground her teeth together for a second before calming herself enough to speak again, "I made friends and shared information. How else do you think they've come to the conclusion that Light is Kira? I mean, they could have figured it out on their own too, I just made the process easier."

"What proof do you have against Light?" Aizawa asked, realizing that everyone outside the task force had merely been feigning ignorance of the current L's identity and that they had a prime suspect. In short, they'd been duped and lied to for months.

"I told you before, Aizawa-san," Ebony glanced up at him, her crimson pupils suddenly dilating to where they nearly blotted out her pink irises completely. He decided to assume it was some kind of defect, "I can see Shinigami. I've _always_ known that they exist, that the Death Notes exist. I've known all my life and I always knew _Light_ was Kira. That's the real reason why I quit having him tutor me. I didn't want to be in the same room as a murderer. That's also why I gave those apples to Soichiro-san to give to Light the first day I met Watari. They were for Ryuk-kun, not Light. Ryuk-kun was always with us before L died, always laughing whenever Light got into a tight fix. He's just here for kicks, nothing more. It's Light that decided to use the Death Note in such a perverse way."

"So…you've always known," Aizawa shut his eyes for a second. This was too much information too quickly, "Why didn't you say something?"

"Would you have believed me?" Ebony asked as her eyes shifted back to normal. Well, normal for her, anyway, "You all would have thrown me into the nearest psychiatric hospital. At any rate, it's too late now. Just please believe me when I say that Light is Kira. Please. I know you don't want to believe it since he's Soichiro's son, but it's true. _Yagami – Light – is – Kira_."

Aizawa and Mogi stared at Ebony as she annunciated each of her words in that last sentence, her face and eyes pleading. She was right, they didn't want to believe that Light was Kira, but so much evidence was pointing his way…

"Ebony," Near tugged on her hand like a child would, urging her toward him. He whispered quietly so Mogi and Aizawa couldn't hear, "What if he tells them?"

"He – no!" Ebony shook her head harshly, dropping her voice again after nearly yelling her answer. She ignored Aizawa and Mogi's curious looks, "I'm not putting my family in danger like that! I won't let him-"

"It may be our only option," Near interrupted, keeping a hold on her hand to help ground her to reality. She sometimes slipped away when upset, "They may not believe you, but they would believe him."

Ebony bit her lip, her free hand clenching at her side as she struggled with her heart and mind. While her heart was screaming at her to protect her family, the people she loved and was loved by, her mind was telling her that capturing Kira would completely solidify her family's safety while hiding them would only give them temporary safety. She ran her fingers agitatedly through her hair as Near played with her other hand, calmly watching as she struggled through her logic and her love.

"Not now," Ebony shook her head, realizing that Lawliet may in fact have to be reintroduced into this case against her wishes, but she wasn't going to submit completely, "Let me talk to him. I'd say go ahead right now, but because of Rem…"

"I see," Near nodded, understanding her concern. They needed to be sure that Rem would be protected before making such a daring move. He knew that neither Ebony nor L would move a centimeter if it meant placing their precious daughter in harm's way.

-oooOooo-

Ebony slunk through the doorway after Aizawa, who was the center of attention for just a second before all attention was riveted in her.

"Ebony-chan!" Matsuda grinned like an idiot, "You're alive!"

"Well, of course I'm alive," Ebony grinned, "You think some silly explosion is going to kill me? Please!"

"What were you doing with Near?" Light asked her, certain that was where she'd been.

"Waiting for a chance to get back to Japan," Ebony shrugged, "I figured this was the best way since you'll all be heading back there eventually. That way I don't have to travel alone again. I don't like it. Flying in a vehicle just really isn't my thing."

"I see," Light narrowed his eyes. This changed everything. Ebony had been in extensive contact with both Near and Mello. It would be completely foolish of him to assume that she hadn't told each of them everything that had happened before L's death, which meant they had been playing with him by allowing him to hear their 'interrogations' and 'questions'. He felt a strong surge of humiliation from realizing this only now, after playing right into their hands like a good puppet. Ebony seemed rather confident in both of them, which he found very, _very_ irritating.

Luckily for him, Light knew exactly how to change that.

When everyone was distracted by the spectacle of Demegawa and his executives being killed by 'Kira', Light stood from his chair and walked to the window, placing a hand against his forehead to feign being upset. His real goal was Ebony, who was looking out the windows as well so as not to see the screen. Her face was somber as her ears told her what her eyes wanted to deny; that Kira had struck yet again and there wasn't anything she could do about it.

"I must say I'm quite surprised, Ebony" He saw her eyes flicker over to his for just a second before darting away again. He smirked slightly. She may defy and challenge him, but his power still had some effect on her, "You've been quite busy these past two years."

"You have too, Light," She replied coolly, shifting her weight casually to one foot and letting her head tilt slightly, all to convey an air of complete calm and zero fear, "Tell me, how easy was it to send your own father to his death?"

Light's eyes narrowed, but he didn't rise to her bait. Instead he grinned again, finally perking her curiosity.

"I wasn't just referring to conspiring with my enemies, Ebony Rose Accott," Light watched her reflection carefully, not wanting to miss a moment, "Or perhaps I should say, Ebony Rose _Lawliet_?"

Ebony stopped breathing. Her eyes strained open to their widest points and her fingers clenched together so tightly that the circulation halted. Light's grin stretched as wide as he dared as he watched her body start shaking slightly, her teeth grinding together harshly in her attempts to keep her composure.

"Shinigami eyes are quite useful," Light continued in a conversational tone as Ebony tried to remind herself to breathe, "They can even see name changes that come through marriage."

"Excuse me," Ebony said, trying to keep her voice from shaking too badly. She was across the room and out the door before anyone could question her.

"Is she ok?" Matsuda asked, staring at the door Ebony had disappeared through.

"She's just upset from having to watch Kira kill on live TV again," Light shook his head and returned to his desk, "It's a hard thing for anyone to watch, and her violent background probably makes it worse, probably reminds her of it."

Aizawa narrowed his eyes. What was going on now?

Ebony slumped against the wall of an alleyway just a block away from where the task force was currently taking up residence, her knees trembling beneath her. Her chest heaved with her shuddering breaths.

'_No…No, no, no, no, no. This can't be happening! I was careful! He shouldn't have known! My name shouldn't have changed!'_

"No!" Ebony screamed and kicked a trashcan, nearly flattening it as it bashed against the brick wall. She screamed and kicked and hit until she was panting like she'd just run an Olympic marathon and trembling on the cold cement, leaning against the wall. Seeing as how it was an alleyway in the middle of New York City, no one would really notice the alley's upkeep. But if anyone had seen it before Ebony came, they would clearly see the damage she'd done to the trashcans and dumpster.

'_Phone, phone…'_ Ebony shook her head and fumbled with her holster with her freezing, aching fingers, nearly ripping it apart in her haste to get out her cell phone. It took her nearly three minutes to get her hands to stop trembling to the point that she could accurately hit the keys and hold the phone to her ear, _'Pick up, pick up, _please_ pick up!!'_

"_Ebony?"_ Said girl swallowed, trying to wet her throat enough so that she could speak, _"Ebony, are you there?"_

"He knows your name!" She finally gasped out, her voice crackling out halfway through due to her dry throat.

"…_.Excuse me?"_

"He knows your name," Ebony repeated, trying to get her voice to stop shaking since she knew that would worry him, "I thought marriage didn't change the name Shinigami see, but it does. Misa saw my last name changed, and Light figured out that it was because I'm married. He knows your name! He knows!"

Lawliet frowned, running his thumb over his bottom lip as he went over what his wife told him. While his breath had initially skipped a beat when she said that Light knew his name, he really didn't think there was anything to worry about.

"_Please calm yourself, Ebony,"_ He said gently, hearing her angry intake of breath. Knowing that she was about to yell at him for being so calm, he quickly monopolized the conversation, _"He merely knows my surname. That is not enough to kill me, and the likelihood of Light figuring out my first name is very, very low. About 2 percent at the most."_

"…Which method of deduction are you giving me, Lawliet?" Ebony asked once she'd calmed down, seeing his point. He may be known as 'L' everywhere, but what better alias to use than one's real name? No one would guess at something so simple, not even Light, especially since his name was just one letter, "The real one, or the fake one?"

"_The real one,"_ Lawliet assured her. She had figured out that he lied about his percentages way back during the first stretch of the Kira investigation. He remembered asking her how she'd figured it out and that she'd said he was far too methodical and calculating to go gallivanting off after one percent or five percent chances, _"I promise you, love. Light will never know my first name unless someone with the eyes tells him. The Death Note will not cause you to lose me again."_

Ebony took in a deep breath and let it out slowly as the adrenaline washed from her system. In hindsight she knew she should have realized this right away, but it had come as such a shock that she hadn't been prepared for it in the least bit. She could control her reactions to things to an extent as long as she knew the event could possibly come to pass, but this one had caught her completely off guard.

"N-Near wanted me to pass along a message," Ebony breathed, walking out of the alley to a nearby bench, "He is trying to plant doubt in the task force. You know, make them suspect Light of being Kira again. It's really hard, though, so he thought it may be best if you did it. They'd believe you. They don't trust Near at all right now, and I'm not really sure if they trust me considering I've been spotted with both Mello and Near. Matsuda might, but you know him. He's way too trusting."

"_Matsuda _is_ somewhat of an idiot,"_ Lawliet replied, ignoring his wife's scoff. He knew she was fond of the man despite his bumbling idiocies that had put their investigation in jeopardy several times.

"Be nice!" Ebony scolded him, "He's a good person! A little trigger-happy, but a good person nonetheless!"

"_That is without a doubt, but he is still somewhat of an idiot,"_ Lawliet affirmed, refusing to be budged in the matter, _"But Matsuda's idiocy is not the subject here. I would like for you to return to me before Yagami Light and the task force leave the United States. I believe Near's suggestion is quite valid and should be analyzed more thoroughly."_

"I was afraid you'd say that," Ebony sighed, realizing that she should have known this would be coming sooner or later. There was really no way to keep L's survival from coming to light during this case, but she was just so scared of losing him again…

"_I promise you that I will take every precaution to protect my life, Ebony,"_ Lawliet said softly to her, divining her thoughts just as he usually did, _"And I will not endanger you or our child. You can count on that."_

Ebony sighed, smiling slightly despite her disappointment and fear. She knew that Lawliet wouldn't risk her life by risking his, which would leave Rem all alone. He loved them far too much to take such risks. If anyone could ensure their safety, the safety of the world's people, it was him and him alone.

* * *

Author's Note: A sweet moment and a freak-out moment, and all in one chapter! How cool is that?

**MythCreatorWriter:** Yeah, lack of updates was serious creativity block. I' glad you like how Near and Ebony interact. Even though he is seriously creepy in a zombie kind of way, I still like the little guy. I'm also glad this seems acceptable to his character. It seemed fitting since he's so much like a child. A creepy child like Henry from The Good Son.

**LittleKittyShaoMao:** I'll make sure to include those. Same with L's past. I haven't forgotten. No worries!

**Timekeeper101:** Glad Ebony's missing her family seems just right. I don't like the obsessive missing either. It's exhausting to read and unrealistic.

**RyokoUri:** Actually, no. I didn't think of Ebony and Near being similar in appearance. I'd created Ebony about a month before attempting this story, and the story changed maybe five times before I was finally set on it. It is purely coincidental, but I like it anyway. It helped with Mello's reaction to her.

**Lunarobi Pride:** Yeah, he'd be about 27 now. And I'm glad you liked Ebony being excited about crushing Mogi's phone. I couldn't have her leave the fighting world without some violence still in her. It wouldn't be realistic if I had her be all gentle.

**xlostinmyownworldx:** You'll be happy to know that I've finally been able to start your drawing of Tech and Matt. It will be a while before I can post it anywhere, though, because I need to buy watermarking software so no one can steal my art. I'm not meaning to brag, but it is good enough for someone to steal and use if they wanted, so I'd rather that not happen. In short, I probably won't be able to post it until somewhere around Christmas since that's what I'll be asking for. I promise to put my heart and soul in it, though, so it will be worth the wait. Promise!

Until next chapter. Reviews, please!

-HaleyJo


	11. What Stopped Murder

Author's Note: Sorry that these updates aren't as fast as they used to be. Kind of unavoidable what with high school and Tae-Kwon-Doe classes. Anyway, I hope this one was worth the wait.

* * *

**11. WHAT STOPPED MURDER**

Lawliet sat in his odd way in one of the rows of seats in the crowded Narita airport, making certain that there was no way for the cameras to see his face. People stared, of course, put off by his unconventional posture, restless hands, and disturbingly wide dark eyes. Many of the security guards were watching him carefully, feeling that someone as odd looking as him could be up to nothing good. But they couldn't make him leave since he wasn't doing anything other than making people a bit uncomfortable. They could probably make up a reason to throw him out, but that would be a waste of the time they needed to spend on the people who were really up to nothing good.

Lawliet knew this was risky, coming out in public like this. If any of those who knew his face even so much as thought they may have seen him, even if just a fleeting glance, it would surely get back to Light at some point or another. He couldn't afford that. Ebony and Rem needed him, and he would never hurt them by simply being reckless. However, all the people who would feel the need to recognize and remember him were in America at the moment, so it was as safe as coming out in public could be.

His wide dark eyes suddenly widened further as he watched a plane pulling up to the airport, its passengers waiting patiently and impatiently to exit the plane. He grinned eagerly around his thumb and stood, moving a bit closer to where the passengers would get off. He searched through the scattering people carefully, ignoring their stares and the few snide remarks they spouted. His grin impossibly widened further once his eyes registered a flash of white, much like that December night in the park three years ago when he first inhaled that wonderful scent of sweets and pastries and heard that gentle voice.

"Ryuzaki!"

Well, gentle when she wasn't yelling. Lawliet opened his arms just in time for Ebony to bound into them, slinging her arms around his neck in an exuberant hug. His long arms engulfed her small form eagerly, so happy to see her that he betrayed his character and lifted her clear off her feet, spinning them both around twice before letting her feet connect with the floor again. He found great enjoyment in hearing her giggles and great amusement in the expressions of those around him.

Rude as it was, it made sense. A beautiful young woman like Ebony publicly showing unending affection for an uncanny young man like himself? The unbelievable match would surely draw attention, but it also gave him a chance to mentally gloat over having stolen her off the dating market by placing that golden wedding band around her finger.

"Oh, I'm so glad to see you!" Ebony kissed his cheek sweetly, grinning as he did the same, "I've missed you so much! I'm so sorry I was gone so long."

"I missed you too, love," Lawliet allowed her to link her arm with his so she could lead them to the conveyor belt that would bring her wheeled backpack to her, "How are they doing?"

"Mello and Matt are doing good," Ebony's eyes searched for her suitcase, "Mello's still a temperamental twit and Matt's still a complete sweetheart. Tech's doing well too. Still chewing gum like the world was going to end tomorrow."

"That is good to hear," Lawliet responded, watching as Ebony reached out for her backpack and almost fell onto the conveyor belt in the process, "Irrational as they often are, they're decent enough. And Tech helps to be a guiding force for them even if Mello's voice often muffles hers."

"Yep. Pretty much," Ebony linked her arm with his again once she'd finally retrieved her wheeled backpack, falling in step with him as they made their way toward the exit, "How's Rem doing?"

"Eager to see her mother," Lawliet directed his wife toward the hotel he had booked just a block away from the airport, keeping his head ducked down more than usual and lacing their fingers together, "She has missed you greatly."

"Oh, I can't wait!" Ebony was suddenly running, dragging Lawliet along with her, "Come on!"

Lawliet shook his head at his wife's over-eagerness, wondering if she'd been drinking soda or eating Pixie Sticks or something on her way back here. It would explain her sudden hyperactivity. Or maybe this was just the reaction of any mother about to see her child again. The city lights showed them the way along the cold first night of December. Ebony was actually wearing shoes so her feet wouldn't get frostbitten since just the first few flecks of snow were beginning to fall. Even though Lawliet didn't much care for the quick pace since she was all but ripping his arm from its socket, he didn't much care for the cold.

Once they actually made it to the hotel, Ebony was bouncing on the balls of her feet while they rode the elevator up to, of course, the top floor. She was practically skipping alongside him as he led her to the suite he'd booked for them, sliding the keycard through the slot.

She then eagerly turned to her husband as she quickly kicked off her faux fur-lined winter boots, "Where's Rem?"

"Second door on the left," His words weren't even completely out of her mouth before Ebony was dropping her coat into his arms – which he allowed to fall to the floor – and opening said door, an expression of pure joy on her white face.

She sighed happily as she spotted her daughter all twisted up under the sheets of the huge bed she was sleeping in. Ebony approached the side and sat down, gently gathering her sleeping daughter into her arms.

"Hey, baby girl," She whispered softly as she kissed her daughter's forehead. She loved how she'd inherited Lawliet's shaggy hair and her own Shinigami-induced eyes. It was only after she'd discovered she was pregnant that she truly understood why her own Shinigami mother had desired a baby so much. Once she'd wrapped her brain around the idea, she'd fallen in love with her baby instantly, giggling whenever she felt her kick inside the womb she'd always thought was useless. Kind of like the appendix.

Lawliet stood hunched in the doorway, staring adoringly at them both, the two females he loved more than anything in the entire world. He loved watching his wife coo over their child, he loved the tenderness in her eyes, and he loved listening to her sing that lullaby Rem used to say to her to help her sleep at night. Ebony was promoting a tradition in the making, singing that same lullaby to her own daughter after having first sung it to his grave. He had such a beautiful, perfect little family.

He wished Watari was still here to see his tiny daughter.

"She's beautiful," Ebony kissed her daughter's baby soft cheek, feeling the bed sink slightly from her husband's weight.

"She gets it from you," Lawliet replied, reaching out to stroke his daughter's face with the tip of his finger.

"Nuh-uh!" Ebony shook her head, grinning as they went over this topic _again_. It was one of their play arguments they engaged in simply to have something to bicker over, "She has your hair and look here," Ebony pointed to her face, "Rem clearly has your nose and eye shape!"

Lawliet shook his head, encouraging his wife to her feet so they could leave the room.

"I'm gonna go get some food," Ebony went to the phone, punching in the number for the room service. He followed her and rested his chin on her shoulder, enjoying her scent.

"I missed you," He said simply, twining one of her white curls around his finger.

"I gathered that," Ebony grinned at him, flipping her dime earring between her fingers. She giggled when he deliberately blew in her ear, one of her ticklish spots, and stuck her tongue out at him, "As much as I'd love to start playing games, I want to be able to eat when the food arrives."

"Very well," Lawliet let her have her space, going to stare out of the window while she waited in the foyer for her food.

He could see his headquarters from here. It still sickened him that the structure he'd had built, the structure that Watari had helped him to have built, was in the hands of a murdering sociopath. The very murdering sociopath who'd had Watari killed. Watari was the closest thing he'd ever had to a father, the closest thing he'd ever had to a family since the deaths of his own until he and Ebony had created a new one. Though he knew that nothing he could have done could have changed the outcome, the old man's death still made him feel incredibly guilty. Guilt was still a relatively new feeling for him, so he wasn't all that great at dealing with it. He actually felt that if anyone should have died that night, it should have been him, not Watari. Watari was a much better person than he was. He should have lived. It wasn't fair.

"Lawliet," He felt his wife's arms snare around his waist, her cheek resting between his shoulder blades, "What's wrong?"

"…Watari," Lawliet sighed. He didn't want to tell her, but he knew she'd hound him until he did, "He shouldn't have died. He should be here. He should have met Rem…he'd have loved her…."

"I'm sorry," Her grip around his waist tightened slightly as she nuzzled his hunched back gently, "But I'm sure he loves her now. Knowing Watari, he probably has no regrets. He's awesome like that."

"…Ebony," Lawliet removed a hand from his pocket and placed it over hers, "You never did tell me why you never used your Death Note to kill Yagami Light when you thought I was dead."

"I-"

"I know it was not merely to refrain from soiling my memory, Ebony," Lawliet turned to face her, his eyes blank and unreadable like they always were whenever he was seeking information. Ebony called it his 'detective face', and it meant that he was going after something he wanted and wouldn't quit until he got it. She noticed nowadays that he'd had that same face when pursuing her romantically two years ago when she'd been too dense to see it, "Tell me the rest."

Ebony shifted slightly, looking down as though embarrassed. Lawliet leaned down further so he could look up to see her face, determined to get his answer.

"I don't know where I'll go," She bit her lip and met his eyes reluctantly, an embarrassed blush painting her cheeks as she elaborated, "When I die, I don't know where I'll go. I can't be sure because of my Shinigami blood. But…I knew you'd go to Heaven so….I wanted at least a chance to be with you when I die, whenever that'll be. People who use the Death Note can't go to Heaven or Hell. I just…wanted to give myself as much of a chance as possible to be able to meet you after I die."

Lawliet's lips parted just a bit, his eyes gentling as he gazed at her.

'_She held herself back from a greatly desired vengeance killing just for the possibility of being with me when she dies,'_ Lawliet closed his eyes and rested his forehead against hers, _'If there is a Heaven, it would be of the blackest injustice to bar this wondrous creature from its grounds.'_

The buzzer to the room went off, announcing the arrival of Ebony's food. She turned and left, leaving her husband in the living room by the window. He turned to look back out of the window, only looking up at the sky rather than down at the ground. He'd never really thought of it since his first death, nor had he before it. He hadn't really denied the existence of an afterlife, but he hadn't said he'd believed in one either. Dying had made him think there was one, given what he'd seen, and now he wondered if Watari was truly watching over him and his little family now. It sounded like something he would do.

'_Am I doing things right, Watari?'_ He asked, his large eyes reflecting the faint stars he could just barely see through the glaring lights of the city bustling with life below him, _'Can I take care of them the right way?'_

He grinned slightly, knowing exactly what Watari would say to a question like that. He'd say that there was no real 'right way' to take care of one's family. He'd say there were only 'different' ways.

Funny how he knew Watari well enough that he could almost still talk to him.

"Want anything?" Ebony asked from the kitchen. It sounded like her mouth was still somewhat full of food. She must be really hungry.

"No, thank you, love," Lawliet replied, content to remain at the window for now. He decided to start going over exactly how he was going to explain his newly formed plan to her. Though his face didn't show it, he mentally grimaced at the fit she was probably going to throw since she always threw a fit whenever he did anything risky. An aftereffect of losing him, he was sure. To her, losing the people she loved was the worst thing that could ever happen since she'd never had such a thing before. He was well aware that losing him or Rem would probably kill her, which was why he'd made certain that the chances of any of them losing a loved one were as small as he could make them.

Hopefully he'd never have to tell her that he'd never be able to fully get rid of his lying habit, even where the love of his life was concerned.

About a half hour later, Lawliet could hear the sounds of Ebony cleaning up in the kitchen. He glanced over his hunched shoulder when she came into the room, smiling gently at him.

"I need to sleep," Ebony said, yawning just at that moment as though to subconsciously prove it to him, "Haven't slept much in days because of Mello's health. Feel free to join me whenever."

Lawliet watched his wife walk by him to the hotel's bedroom, shutting the door gently behind her to make absolutely certain that she wouldn't wake Rem. He contemplated things for a moment, a small part of him saying to be considerate, but the rest of him recalled the feeling of her soft curves pressed against him at the airport for the first time in over a month. It seemed that his carnal desires were winning out over his flimsy attempts at being considerate.

He turned from the window and approached the bedroom. Being considerate had never really been one of his strong points, anyway.

* * *

Author's Note: The last line is killing you, isn't it. Just so you know, I will be posting the 'M' rated chapter separately so that this story can remain in the 'T' rating so more people have access to it. So when this jumps from chapter 11 to chapter 13, that's why. Don't wig out on me.

**Timekeeper101:** Yeah, I liked that line too. I thought it would fit as one of those random thoughts that everyone has every day. I'm also glad people like Ebony's wings. I'd been worried as to how that would be received.

**nekosoulreaper:** Yeah. For someone named Light, he sure doesn't spread much of it, does he?

**MythCreatorWriter:** Yeah, Mikami will show up soon. He kind of has to. He's the X-Kira.

**Alexandritee:** I'll explain L's name very soon. No worries!

**Lunarobi Pride:** Sorry. Tempting as it is, I can't have you kill Light. You don't exist in my story.

**Mel1983:** I can't wait to see what my humiliating end for Light will be too! I hope it's good!

Please review for me!

-HaleyJo

(P.S. Have any of you ever heard of the People to People Student Ambassador program? If you are considering participating in it in any way, please check out the link on my main page first.)


	12. Love in the Midst of War

Author's Note: Ok, I originally posted this separately so the rest of the story could stay in the T rating, but I decided screw it.

* * *

**12. LOVE IN THE MIDST OF WAR**

Ebony sighed and leaned her head back, kneading the flesh of her neck to loosen the tense muscles. She'd never been fond of extensive travel in which she had to sit for hours on end and couldn't really get any exercise beyond going to the restroom. She really didn't know how business people could stand it. It was probably one of those things you just got used to after a while.

Ebony smiled as she heard the bedroom door open and softly click shut, but she didn't turn. She'd been certain that Lawliet would join her that night, it being their first opportunity to lay in the same bed in over a month, but she hadn't expected him to give in so soon. Her face then flushed slightly when his long arms wrapped around her waist, pulling her back against his chest. He leaned his head down and kissed the side of her neck, his tongue flicking out to taste her soft skin. He felt her shiver and grinned. His ego always got a boost whenever he could see how she reacted so perfectly to his touch.

"Rem," Ebony mumbled as Lawliet's hands began to trace over the contours of her pale body through her dark clothes. They were contours he'd long ago memorized completely and yet still felt the need to reexamine, "She's just down the hall."

"Be that as it may," Lawliet responded as he gently removed her dime earring and set it aside on a nearby table along with her hip holster, "I believe that is quite possibly why homo sapiens came up with the act of kissing. Not only is it pleasurable to the sense of touch and taste, it also muffles vocalized sounds."

"'Homo sapiens'," Ebony rolled her eyes, "Always so technical."

"If I were any other way," Lawliet gently turned her so he could rest his forehead against hers, "would you have married me?"

"Probably not," Ebony shrugged, feigning nonchalance even as her hand lifted to trace over the angular features of his unique face, "Probably never would have given you a second glance."

"And you wonder why I consider myself lucky," Lawliet leaned in to kiss the spot just below her ear – the one that had previously held her dime earring – and repeated the process down her neck until he found her shoulder, "Hundreds of men vied for your attention, and yet you picked me."

Ebony frowned, not liking how he'd said that. Like it was the most unbelievable thing the world had ever heard of. She knew that Lawliet was what most would normally consider unappealing in every sense of the word, but she'd never had a taste for the normal.

"L Lawliet," Ebony cupped his face in her hands and tilted it so he was looking her in the eye, "You're everything I could have ever asked for if I'd known I'd been wanting anything. If I'd known I'd been _needing_ anything. I was always just so focused on getting some stability that I wasn't paying attention to the things that I really wanted or needed. Too focused on order."

"Order," Lawliet grinned at her and pulled her to his long body, "You wanted order and fell in love with me? Quite ironic, I must say."

"That's my point," Ebony stood up on her tiptoes and brushed her lips along his, moving to whisper into his ear, "Order was the last thing I needed…"

Lawliet bit his lip for a moment at the feel of her lips brushing against his ear before tugging gently on her white hair so that he would be able to kiss her, pressing her body against his so that nothing could even hope to pass between them. She whimpered slightly against his mouth as he returned to his previous task of tracing her gentle curves.

"Lawliet," Ebony let her head fall back as Lawliet graced the skin of her neck with his lips and tongue. She was not trying to get his attention; she merely desired to speak his name. He tightened his grip on her waist, moving his hands up to trace her spine.

Lawliet backed her up into the wall, cupping her lovely face in his hands as he kissed her. Despite his fragile, weak appearance, he was usually the dominant one when it came to making love. And despite Ebony's violent tendencies and unwillingness to place herself at the mercy of anyone, she always submitted to her husband's attentions. She always surrendered control.

While giving her his name was the greatest gesture of trust Lawliet could give to her, giving him control was the greatest gesture of trust Ebony could give to him.

Ebony rolled her shoulders back as she heard the zipper to her light jacket being dragged down, the entire thing slowly slid from her arms. She opened her eyes to get lost in his, Lawliet deliberately holding her gaze as he gently brushed his fingers over her stomach, making the muscles tremble slightly because she was very ticklish. She leaned forward to kiss him again, only leaving when Lawliet pushed her gently back against the wall again. She lifted her arms as he slowly pulled her shirt up, exposing her skin inch by inch until he was freeing it from her wrists and tossing it carelessly to the floor. She grinned shyly as he brushed her hair back behind her shoulders after having it spill over her chest from her shirt and his dark eyes took in the exposed skin of her torso, only covered by a lacy black bra. Not over the top, but enough to draw attention to that part of her anatomy. His long fingers were soon at her black jeans, undoing the button before pulling down the zipper so he could slide them down her legs, revealing a matching pair of black, lacy panties. She giggled slightly at the excited look in his eyes.

Lawliet always enjoyed undressing her, which was why it was pretty much habit now for her to wear enticing but comfortable undergarments regardless of whether or not they were planning to be intimate that day. Removing her clothing was an important part of the foreplay process for him. He enjoyed taking his time, never wanting to rush their fragile moments together, to be able to steadily bare her skin and pay attention to her body with his hands and mouth as it was revealed to him.

Speaking of which, those hands were currently smoothing over her hips and that mouth was mapping her collar bones, leaving the tiniest of lovebites in its wake.

She didn't stand still, though. Somehow, even through the haze of ecstasy Lawliet was inflicting upon her, Ebony was able to consciously move her hands down to the hem of his white cotton shirt, slipping her fingers beneath it. She gently raised it up, dipping her head to press her lips against the thin, toned muscles protecting his ribcage. She removed the shirt completely once she'd encouraged him into lifting his arms and ran her fingertips gently down the subtle contours of his thin, long abdomen, letting the pads of her fingers absorb the smooth texture of his skin.

His fingers were still moving over her body as well, so much softer than her own that she was sometimes a bit self-conscious of her rough hands and feet. They admittedly weren't as rough as they had been, two years of gentler treatment allowing them to soften slightly, but still quite coarse. Brushing that thought aside, Ebony flattened her battle-hardened palms against his toned chest, slowly gliding them down over his stomach and then back up, sliding around his neck to entangle her fingers in his untamable dark hair.

Ebony grinned slightly at how unlucky most human females were to turn Lawliet away the second they became aware of his existence. She was more than certain that any woman who was lucky enough to catch even a glimpse of the skin he kept hidden under his clothing would have a hard time resisting him. His lithe body was wrapped in completely unblemished skin the color of the cream one would put in their coffee to sweeten it, skin that clung lovingly to the muscles trained by his fighting style but not so tightly that it looked gross. While most would call him severely underweight, a single look at his body was enough to see that that was not the case at all. He merely had a very thin, lanky form that hid itself too well beneath the confinement of clothing. Any female who was able to somehow slink into his arms would very quickly find themselves reduced to a completely melted mess of pleasure and wonder as his eager and talented hands and mouth worked their magic.

Ebony knew this muddled, overwhelmingly euphoric state of being all too well.

"Are all geniuses multitalented?" Ebony asked breathlessly as Lawliet trailed his fingertips gently along the sensitive skin of her inner thighs. She felt his lips quirk into a pleased grin against the skin just above her still-covered breasts. Her body trembled in its place between him and the wall.

"Perhaps," Lawliet chuckled softly as he allowed his hands to trail up her subtly shivering body, flitting around her sides to tease the clasp securing the last scrap of clothing hiding her torso from his loving gaze. He gently undid it, sliding his hands up to her shoulders, "I've always had fairly decent dexterity."

'_Fairly decent-,'_ Ebony repeated sarcastically in her head before she lost her train of thought, a gasp coerced from her throat as her bra fell to the floor and was replaced by Lawliet's long hands, gently cupping and caressing her breasts that heaved with her unsteady breathing. It was during times like these that she really noticed and was grateful for having the body and face that she did, for being something that Lawliet would be pleased to look at and touch, that drew out his normally repressed passions.

A very slight moan escaped Lawliet's lips when he felt Ebony fumbling with the clasp of his jeans, undoing the zipper next and allowing the garment to pool around his ankles. Lawliet stepped out of his jeans and nudged her legs farther apart with a gentle sweep of his hand so that he could settle between them. Even through what clothing remained on their bodies, Ebony let out a breathy moan when his erection came into contact with her core. The next sound to pass through her lips was louder as Lawliet gripped her hips to hold her steady, making it easier to fully grind against her. Though her small feet lost traction against the floor several times, he never dropped her or fumbled for a better grip.

He suddenly stopped, making Ebony whine slightly in disappointment. Lawliet held an amused fingertip against her lips to silence her as he turned them both and began to walk forward, making Ebony walk backward. The backs of her knees were suddenly met with resistance and she toppled over onto the large bed, bringing her husband down with her. Once they were situated, he eagerly continued his previous task.

Lawliet couldn't help but grin down at the beautiful woman squirming beneath him, her head tilting back into the pillows as her sugar hair lay in sprawls of shimmering curls across the bed sheets. Her small hands grasped tightly at his biceps in an attempt to keep herself somewhat grounded in reality. He leaned down to kiss her, swallowing her moans and whimpers that continued to increase in volume.

"Lawliet," Ebony whimpered around his insistent lips, her back arching and pressing her breasts firmly to his chest, "Please."

"Patience, love," Lawliet whispered as he leaned down again to kiss her breast, gently tracing the curves of the other. He felt her legs curl around his lower back, dragging him closer in an attempt to entice him inside more quickly. He closed his lips around her nipple and sucked gently, causing her back to arch and pressing her breast more firmly against his mouth. Her legs unraveled from him and her feet pressed against the bed, her toes curling and clenching at the sheets beneath them. He switched after a while, causing her fingers to entangle themselves in his thick black hair. She gasped around the syllables of his name as his thin fingers suddenly left her breast in favor of the warm spot between her legs. Her hips immediately bucked against his hand as his fingers found an acceptable pattern and gradually quickened it.

"Law-l-liet," Ebony gasped as the weight of his body was suddenly gone, giving her a very obvious clue as to his next actions. As she'd expected, she felt his hands swiftly tug her underwear down to toss it aside and then gently spread her legs farther apart, the throbbing spot between her legs warmed by his hot breath and her thighs tickled by his wild hair.

Ebony's fingers dug deeply into the bedding at the first flick of his tongue, her lips parting to allow a gasping moan to reverberate off the walls. Lawliet held her fumbling legs still, lightly tracing random patterns along the sensitive skin of her inner thighs. He felt her back arch when his tongue slid inside her, mimicking what would happen later with a different part of his body. He knew she'd lost her usually rigid self-control when she suddenly froze, her breath hitching in her throat before a loud moan escaped her vocal chords, her muscles locking tightly until she went limp.

Lawliet smiled as he lifted himself back up, seeing her gasping for breath as her fingers finally released their death grip on the sheets. He loved seeing her this way and knowing that it was of his own doing. Ebony's arms then lifted and weakly wrapped around his neck, breathlessly kissing him and letting her blunt nails scrape gently against his scalp.

"Lawliet," Said man gasped when he felt her toes slide his boxers down his legs, her callused soles scraping gently against his skin. He'd always liked the feel of the rough skin, an interesting contrast to the rest of her smooth flesh. Thin fingers soon encircled his freed erection, squeezing gently but firmly. He moaned softly in her ear, making her grin, "Seems like you have a…small problem."

Lawliet grinned at the teasing.

"Small?"

Ebony suddenly groaned, followed by a shuddering gasp as Lawliet entered her with one fluid thrust, filling her completely. Her fingers dug into his shoulders, her legs trembling independently of her will against his hips. Lawliet grinned and kissed her cheek once he'd caught his breath after having it all forced from his lungs due to the feeling of her insides wrapping tightly around him.

"Problem fixed, love?" He teased, the deep timbre of his voice causing a shiver in the girl beneath him.

Her only response was a whimper when he retreated, only to fill her again. Lawliet watched humorously as Ebony bit her lip, trying to keep herself from making much noise. It came from pure habit due to when silence was necessary for her survival during her childhood, but she should know by now that it was inevitable for her to groan beneath him. He made absolutely certain of that since he loved hearing her lustful moans and pleading whimpers gasping out his name in pure ecstasy.

"Ebony," Lawliet moaned gently when Ebony licked his earlobe, teasing it between her teeth for a second before he moved back to graze his mouth against her trembling lips, "_'Dark beauty'_."

Ebony laughed breathlessly at the irony. That was her name's English meaning, and yet the only darkness her form held was in her clothing, aside from the fact that half of the blood running through her veins was Shinigami blood. Her laughter was cut off by her husband's lips closing over her own as his thrusts became harder, sweat sliding between their pale bodies. His gunmetal eyes watched her in rapture as their bodies moved together, staring like she was the most fascinating thing he'd ever seen. His answering moans were always quiet, his eyes expressing his passion far more clearly than his voice ever could.

The eyes were the window to the soul, and Lawliet was a perfect example of that old saying. When he allowed them to, his eyes told her everything he would ever wish to share with her. She cupped his face in her hands and ran her fingers through his dark hair, falling in love with him all over again as she did every time they made love.

Ebony's back suddenly arched as far as it could bend, a cry of heady ecstasy spilling from her swollen lips. Lawliet buried his face in her throat and groaned deeply against her skin as Ebony's inner walls clenched around him and her lovely thighs shook uncontrollably against his hips.

Once they drifted back down to earth, they collapsed against each other, their breaths labored and heavy. Lawliet then drew out of her once he was able, rolling onto his side and gathering her limp, trembling form into his long arms. He nuzzled his face into her hair, pressing her damp, completely appeased body against his.

She was the descendent of a God of Death. That could never be denied, for her body and face could only be that of a dark goddess.

"I love you," Lawliet murmured sweetly in her ear, gently stroking her tangled sugar hair.

"I love you too, Lawliet," Ebony replied just as softly as her eyelids drooped and her body snuggled unconsciously against his, preparing for a deep sleep.

"Forever?"

"Yes," Her speech was slurred as her eyes closed, "Forever and a day."

* * *

Author's Note: Posting this isn't as hard as I thought it would be.

-HaleyJo


	13. Back on the Case

Author's Note: Ok, here's chapter 13. You'll all like the ending, I think.

* * *

**13. BACK ON THE CASE**

The tip of Lawliet's long index finger gently stroked Ebony's right cheek, then moving to glide against her closed eyelid and tracing over her sweet, pale rose lips. He used the lightest touch possible, enjoying watching her sleep peacefully far too much to awaken her just yet. While she looked like a seraph when awake, she was an absolute goddess when in serene slumber. How he had been granted the love of such a glorious creature was one of the very few things beyond his comprehension, but he was never going to question his good fortune or think too deeply on it. His wandering fingers soon moved down to stroke her slender throat, then ghosting over the modest curves of her clavicle bones.

Her face shifted slightly, showing signs of awakening. Her pink and red eyes slowly drifted open, blinking sleepily before yawning and stretching out under the covers. She turned her face toward him and gave him a smile that told him she was still half asleep.

"Good morning," She said, entangling her fingers with the ones he'd had drifting over the base of her throat, "Feeling better?"

Lawliet grinned. Trust her to know that he'd still been somewhat upset over Watari's death before attempting to and succeeding at seducing her.

"Much," He nodded as he rested his forehead against hers, "You feel better as well, I trust?"

"Uh-huh," She sat up reluctantly, stretching her back again with her arms behind her head, hearing the satisfying pops testifying that her spine was cracking back into place after a night's restful sleep while Lawliet admired the enjoyable sight of so much of her bare skin. Her face was somewhat somber, though, as she looked out the window at the jagged skyline of Tokyo. The sun hadn't risen yet, "You know, sometimes I feel guilty about being happy during such a dark time…like I don't have the right to be happy….I know that's a load of bull, but still…I can't help it…"

Lawliet sat up and wrapped his arms carefully around his wife as though she would break, resting his chin on her shoulder to gaze at the sight she was seeing. He understood why she felt that way, but he still wished she wouldn't. If one lived by the principle of being sad whenever someone else was sad, no one would ever be happy.

"Happiness is most important when things are so dark," Lawliet said, delicately tracing her clavicle bones again, "Would you ask Rem to be unhappy just because someone else is?"

Ebony flinched and Lawliet immediately felt guilty for the harsh statement, but he didn't take it back. She needed to hear it. Something she often asked of him was to just be straight up honest with her even when it sounded mean.

"No," Ebony shook her head, resting it against his, "I plan for her to grow up without the idea that she ever deserves to suffer just because shit happens."

"Ah! Good," Lawliet smiled again, "That means I don't have to remind you of this again."

"Oh, I doubt that," Ebony giggled, leaning back against him as they fell back into the sheets, "You'll probably have to remind me of that for the rest of my life."

"Indeed," Lawliet sighed, glad that her spirits were back up again. He gathered her close and then spoke seriously, "Now, you know that drastic action must soon be taken in this case, correct?"

"…Yes," Ebony sighed, detangling herself from the cocoon of his arms and slipping out from under the bed sheets. She shivered slightly in the air that felt cold after being under the warm covers, but persisted in finding some clothes to wear, "What's your plan?"

"Well," Lawliet hedged slightly as he went about gathering his clothing as well, "Please allow me a moment to phrase this correctly."

Ebony frowned, her suspicion shooting through the roof, but she kept silent while her husband attempted to gather his thoughts. Things remained that way while they dressed and he led her to the room in which their daughter currently resided.

"I have an idea that you may find quite amusing," Lawliet finally began as he helped her get the still sleeping Rem bundled up in thick blankets to protect her from the cold, "In fact, I know you will find it quite amusing. After you get angry with me, of course."

"Angry?" Ebony's brow furrowed, knowing he was probably right. He was almost always right, "What have you decided without telling me _this_ time?"

Lawliet sighed as his wife carefully set their daughter in her umbrella stroller, making sure all her extremities were covered by the blankets. He kept silent as they bundled themselves up as well and exited the hotel room to ride the elevator down to the lobby. He heard Ebony sigh when he snared his arm around her shoulders, knowing that if he was trying to placate her before he even said anything that she was probably going to get _really_ pissed off soon.

Lawliet could hear some occasional mutterings as they walked through the cold streets, Ebony pushing the stroller along and leaning her head against his shoulder. Some of the comments were incredulous of their union while others were delighted coos over their baby girl. He couldn't help but smile just a little as a feeling of pride welled in his chest just for a second before it was gone again. He glanced down at his daughter, somewhat surprised that she was still asleep. Rem had definitely inherited her mother's sleeping habits since, on the occasions that Ebony was exhausted, a tornado could rip through the area and she'd sleep right through it. Ebony was more than thankful for that since she said she thought she'd collapse on the spot if Rem was up as much as her husband was.

"_One insomniac is more than enough for me, thank you very much,"_ was the phrase she'd used once after putting Rem to bed after a particularly eventful day.

"Lawliet?" Ebony looked up at him, her pink and red eyes wary, "What am I going to get pissed at you about now?"

-oooOooo-

Light looked up at the headquarters, slightly adjusting his grip on his suitcase. This was the headquarters he'd pried from L's cold, dead hands, living the meaning to the phrase 'over my dead body'. He controlled his face carefully, preventing a smirk of smug pride from forming. This building was the embodiment of L's cause, of everything he stood for.

And now it belonged to him, the one criminal in L's entire career as a detective that he hadn't been able to bring to justice. There was no greater way to smear his memory than this, in Light's opinion.

"The headquarters is already fully functional?" Matsuda marveled as they entered the lobby and approached the panel into which Light would punch the code that would allow them to enter, "I didn't know you could do that from outside, Light."

"…I can't," Light said just as he finished the code.

A giant red X appeared on the screen.

"_INVALID ENTRY CODE."_ A computerized voice said.

"What?" Ide frowned and turned to Light, "Why did you change the code?"

"I…didn't," Light frowned and hit the code in again. Maybe he'd mistyped it.

"_INVALID ENTRY CODE."_ The voice said again as the red X reappeared. Ryuk was chuckling insanely behind the men who were doing their best to ignore the otherworldly creature.

"Ok, what's going on?" Matsuda asked, scratching the back of his head, "If you didn't change the code, who did?"

"_Hello?"_ A voice they all recognized came through the speakers, an obviously feigned innocence lacing its tone, _"Who's there?"_

"Ebony?" Aizawa shook his head. How the hell did Ebony get all these places? From Japan to the Wammy's House then back to Japan only to take off to America to Mello and then all the way to New York to Near and coming back to them only to vanish the same night and reappear all the way back in Japan and somehow into their headquarters when she couldn't possibly have known the entry code. What kinds of connections could such a mistrustful girl possibly have to make such extensive travel even remotely possible?

"_Aizawa-san!"_ Ebony giggled over the intercom, _"So good to see you! Matsuda-san, Mogi-san, and Ide-san, too! Can't say I'm happy to see Light, but that's only natural, I guess."_

"Uh…" Matsuda frowned. He knew she was still suspicious of Light, but he just didn't get why. There was no way he could be Kira. No way.

"How did you change the code?" Light asked. There was no way she could have changed the codes. She hated computer work…

"_Pft! I can't change computer codes, you doof!"_ He could practically see her rolling her coral and crimson eyes, _"I'm no computer wiz. I still don't even know what all a damn cell phone can do. I just sat by and watched."_

"So…if you didn't change the code, then who did?" Light asked, knowing she was deliberately dancing around the subject just to piss him off. But he was better than that. He couldn't be pushed by some troublesome girl he'd tutored back in high school. It was foolish of her to try to push his buttons like this. She might be pretty accurate in hitting them, but she couldn't hit them hard enough. No one could.

"_Wanna meet him?"_ Ebony asked, sounding very, very excited, _"I think you'd get a real kick out of it. I know I would."_

"Ok," Light nodded, knowing that she had whoever she was with – more than likely her husband with the last name Lawliet – could see them. It really wasn't very surprising that her husband could hack the headquarter's system and change the codes like this. She must have met him at the Wammy's House, and the Wammy's House bred geniuses specifically to replace L.

The screen then showed a green O and allowed them to enter, each curious and a few a little disgruntled. They walked along the clear hallway, their footsteps echoing around them. If anything had remained unchanged in this place, it was how every sound would bounce off the walls and return to play for their ears again. While they had tried to make the place more comfortable, homier, easier to be in, that little bit had never been able to be gotten rid of.

Kind of like how a graveyard was still a graveyard even when you built a new house over it.

-oooOooo-

"Isn't she just adorable?"

"Yes indeed, dear heart. Though I'm not sure if our temperamental friend would agree at this particular moment."

Tech snickered as she and her game addicted lover watched Mello's face scrunch in irritation as a bouncing baby girl with shaggy black hair curled her little arms around one of his shins and grinned up at him. For some reason that no one could fathom, Rem absolutely adored the blonde haired man, attaching herself to his arm or leg whenever he was around. It was suspected that it was because, unlike Tech, Rem rather liked the scent of leather and since that was what dominated Mello's wardrobe, it only made sense that she would follow him around.

"Mello!" Rem lifted her arms and hopped up and down on her little feet, "Up, please! Up!"

Mello sighed and surprisingly reached down and cupped his hands under the tiny girl's arms, lifting her up to the couch and onto his lap. Rem giggled in delight and snuggled against him, wrapping her short arms around his torso as far as she could reach. Mello let his hand rest on her head and looked over at the slightly shocked people currently sharing the room with him, giving them a harsh glare.

"What?" He demanded, the word less of a question and more of a dare for either of them to say a single word.

"Nothing, buddy," Matt held up his gloved hands in defense, not wanting to push his luck with his best friend tonight and lose another of his nine lives. He and Tech watched as the sixteen month old girl fell asleep on Mello's lap, her arms still secured around his body.

Despite Mello's harsh, abrasive personality, he actually had a rather big soft spot for kids. He did really well at not letting it show, but it always came through in moments like this with L and Ebony's only daughter.

"So basically, we're supposed to baby-sit the kid till L and Ebony are able to look after her again," Mello stated in a hushed voice so as not to wake Rem. His claim was that he'd relented in letting the girl sit on his lap so she'd fall asleep and not bug them.

"That's about right," Tech nodded, "Which pretty much means I'll be taking care of her."

"Glad we all understand each other," Mello nodded as well, biting off a piece of his chocolate bar that Rem had tried to steal earlier.

While he understood that L himself was now completely active in the case again, or at least mostly active, he still desired to capture Kira before either his rival or his idol. His hopes had admittedly diminished somewhat since he knew that L wasn't called the greatest detective in the world for no reason, but that fact had also fueled his hope at the same time. If he could somehow manage to beat even L to capturing Kira, his spot as L's successor would be 100 percent guaranteed.

'_L's being there might actually make things easier for me,'_ Mello thought, allowing the chocolate to melt on his tongue, _'Yagami Light will be under pressure and may make careless mistakes. L might actually give me what I need to win.'_

-oooOooo-

Light wondered stupidly if this was what a heart attack felt like.

Ebony was just entering the control room from the side door that led to the kitchen, a steaming mug of coffee in one hand and a small dish filled almost to the brim with sugar cubes in the other. She gracefully sank into one of the cushioned, wheeled chairs and set the sugar cube dish on the main desk. The mug she was carrying was passed to a pair of long, spidery hands, held as though it were about to break. A young man was crouching in the wheeled chair beside hers, smiling gently at the albino girl before facing the task force, no expression whatsoever on his pale, angular face. He stood with his back slightly hunched from endless hours crouching before computer screens and stuffed his hands in his pockets, his bare foot lifting to scratch his left ankle.

Everyone felt a sense of dizzying déjà vu, especially the bronze haired genius leading a double life right under everyone's noses.

"I'm L. It is good to see you all again. Tell me, have I missed much?"

* * *

Author's Note: So? How was that for a miraculous return? I would have made Light flip out more, but it's not the time for that. Sorry. I hope you enjoyed it anyway.

**Mel1983:** I promise I'll be brutal with Light's death. He irritates me too much for me to be as merciful as you were.

**Kit-Kat Punk-Lover:** I love your name! And don't worry. Light's an egotistical prick, so he has to die in a humiliating fashion. It's like an unwritten law or something.

**TimeKeeper101:** I'm flattered you like my story enough to quote it. That's one of the best compliments a writer can receive.

**MythCreatorWriter:** M rated means adult issues like drugs, sex, rape, heavy drinking, extreme violence, stuff like that. I bet you can figure out which one chapter 12 is.

**Fizzwizzler:** I'm glad you liked my stories enough to sacrifice your precious sleep for them. I would do that too if I didn't have a time limit on my computer usage.

**Lunarobi Pride:** Yeah, sorry you can't kill Light, but I promise I'll do it for you. You can even send me ideas on how to make his death as degrading as possible, if you wish. That way you'd at least be helping me to kill him. I like your name, by the way. Does it mean anything specific?

**Madeline Cullen:** I plan on posting images of the online once I get watermarking software so no one can steal my work. That might be around Christmas, but I promise to let you know when I post them big enough for people to see unlike the picture of Ebony as my profile icon.

Please review for me!

-HaleyJo


	14. The Question

Author's Note: Sorry this hasn't been as fast but I've been trying to slow it down to make sure I'm not missing anything. Please enjoy.

* * *

**14. THE QUESTION**

Lawliet had to admit, Yagami Light's acting abilities were still nothing short of admirable.

Aside from looking like he'd shit a brick for the first few seconds, the bronze haired young man had managed to smile and welcome him back just as everyone else did. Lawliet had given him a tiny, nearly imperceptible smirk that no one but he would notice, just to piss him off. The very slight tic in the muscle just under the left corner of his jaw proved that he'd definitely noticed. Lawliet had categorized Light's responses long ago, and that particular tic was the very reaction that always betrayed any unease or anger he may be feeling. No one else had keen enough eyes to notice, except for Ebony who had filled him in on other little responses Light had, but that didn't matter much to him. That was all for his own childishly competitive satisfaction.

Light sat at his desk, his heart racing behind his ribcage despite his calm façade. What the hell was going on?! L was supposed to be dead! _Dead_!! He'd watched him die with his own eyes! He'd felt his heart stop beating! He'd seen his coffin lowered into the ground in the cemetery not an hour's drive away from here!!

'_But…I never actually saw the body after it was taken from the headquarters,'_ Light reminded himself, trying to keep a grip on his faltering mask. He couldn't afford to lose it here, _'I never saw it in the coffin either. It was closed already. But how is he still alive?! Ryuk said nothing could change a person's fate once it is written in the Death Note. Rem wrote in his name, though she tore it out and took it with her to wherever she went, but he still had to die! He _did_ die! How the hell did he come back?!'_

His red-brown eyes cornered to Ebony who was sitting faithfully by L's side just as she'd always done before his supposed death. She reminded him of some kind of guard dog, loyally sticking to her owner's side like glue and growling at anyone or anything that would dare to raise a finger against her master. How pathetic.

'_She must have something to do with it,'_ Light concluded, narrowing his gaze slightly, _'Maybe she can spread her immunity to the Death Note…? No, that's too far of a stretch. Her immunity pertains only to her, whatever it is. She must have found a loophole, some hidden rule…'_

His eyes suddenly widened, his breath catching in his chest.

'_Rem!'_ Realization slammed against his chest like an iron fist, _'They had a past relationship. She must have done something to bring him back so both Ebony and Misa could be happy! That must be it. Nothing else makes sense. But how did she do it…?'_

"How did you come back, Ryuzaki?" Matsuda asked, his usual excitement coloring his tone despite the fact that he was supposed to be a mature, level-headed detective. Ebony didn't bother to hide her amused grin. She was grasping at anything to amuse her since Light hadn't freaked out like she'd been hoping for. What a pity.

"Surely you see how I cannot answer such a question, Matsuda," Lawliet replied, not looking up as he stirred eight sugar cubes into his coffee, stuffing one into his mouth to melt on his tongue, "Kira cannot know how I survived his attempt on my life. That would be like signing my own death certificate, something I'd rather not do."

"Oh, yeah," Matsuda rubbed the back of his neck, feeling foolish as he often did.

"Be nice," Ebony nudged Lawliet with her bare foot, earning a slight pout from him, "Don't worry about it, Matsuda-san. It's an understandable question. Keep on asking questions even though _some people_," Lawliet ignored her pointed glare in his direction, "think you foolish for it. How else will you learn?"

"Yeah," Matsuda grinned, feeling better after her encouraging words. It was kind of funny how they fell back into old patterns so easily, "But, how did you guys get in here? I thought this place was practically impenetrable."

Ebony giggled, looking very pleased with herself, "There is only one place in this building that isn't monitored or alarmed or booby-trapped. Can you guess where?"

Matsuda frowned, trying his best to think of any place that would be vulnerable to penetration, but he came up with nothing.

"The air vents," Light suddenly said from his seat before his computer.

"Brilliant as always, Yagami-kun," Lawliet commented.

"But those places are so small," Ide commented, having not seen her contortionist act during her confinement, "Even you couldn't get in here."

"Ha! You haven't seen her in action, Ide," Matsuda grinned, thrilled to know something someone else didn't for a change, "Ebony-chan is really flexible. It's like she doesn't have bones at all!"

"We had someone else tell me how to hack the system," Ebony commented, recalling how Matt had had to coach her through the process two times before she'd gotten it right, "Then I was able to let Ryuzaki in once I got it all right. Ryuzaki then changed the access codes."

"So," Lawliet ignored the conversation between Matsuda, Ide, and his wife and glanced over at Light, "You plan on investigating Takada-san, Yagami-kun?" He tilted his head to the side a bit as he sipped his sugary coffee.

"Yes," Light nodded, fitting into his police roll perfectly. He knew very well that two people in the room knew he was Kira and that two more suspected him, but he was acting for those who still gave him their loyalty, "It came off well. And by investigating how she gets in contact with Kira, we may be able to track Kira."

"Why would we waste time doing that, Yagami-kun?" Lawliet asked. He knew that Light knew he was just trying to piss him off by flashing his favorite 'ignorant' card again. It just worked so wonderfully, though. He couldn't help but use it, "We already have Kira in the building. Why waste time arresting someone else who is merely Kira's puppet?"

"I know what you're trying to do, Ryuzaki," Light replied, the proper amount of irritation lacing his tone. While Lawliet's 'ignorant' card worked nearly flawlessly, so did Light's 'innocent' card, "I'm not Kira. You're the one wasting time by mindlessly pursuing me. Aizawa," Light stood from his chair and faced the other man, pointedly ignoring Lawliet's presence in the room, "Come with me to set up bugs and cameras like I promised. We'll need to get there early in order to plant them properly so they won't be seen."

'_I suppose that is one way of putting it, Yagami Light,'_ Lawliet ran his thumb over his bottom lip, his gaze narrowing just a bit as it followed the two men out the door, _'A more appropriate wording would be more along the lines of that you want to know where the cameras and bugs are so that you can remove them later in order to privately communicate with Takada Kiyomi. Once an excuse to remove the wires and cameras arises, of course.'_

"I remember this woman," Ebony sneered slightly at the screens through which they watched Light effortlessly charm the unsuspecting Takada, "The '_refined_ Takada'. 'Miss To-Oh'. The easiest name is 'bitch'."

"Uh, why do you hate her?" Ide asked. He still didn't know this albino girl very well yet, so he was going through the same confusion most people did when they met her due to the contrasting facets of her personality.

"I nearly fell on her when I tripped on the stairs back when I attended To-Oh University before being confined cost me my scholarship," Ebony explained, "She got all bitchy about it and started a rumor that me and Ryuzaki were dating back when he was posing as a student there to get close to Light. Self-important little…"

"But…aren't you two married now?"

"Yeah, but we weren't together at that time. She was just being a bitch," Ebony growled slightly, nearly gagging at how easily Takada allowed herself to be caught in Light's deceitful, seductive web. She understood to a purely aesthetic extent since he was very attractive, but Takada really had a very thick skull to think he had any romantic interest in her.

She was falling into his control much like Amane Misa before her. Just a means to an end…

Ebony did giggle a bit from Matsuda's and Ide's conversation over the latter man's lack of a love life. It really was kind of funny that the man was so romantically inept, especially when compared to Lawliet. The shaggy haired man was socially retarded and didn't give a crap about what anyone thought of him in any way, and yet he was happily married while a normal man like Ide was hopelessly single. Lawliet even had a child, though they would never mention her here. Lawliet didn't think that Light would hurt their child since that went against his ideal of justice to harm an innocent child, but he wasn't going to take any chances with his baby's life.

"It seems that Yagami-kun is still a lady-killer," Lawliet mused aloud as they watched the screens connecting them to the hotel room in which Light was meeting Takada.

"Pft! Takada's no lady," Ebony mumbled, irritably flicking her dime earring back and forth between her fingers.

"Indeed she is not," Lawliet agreed, pulling Ebony's chair closer to his so he could play with her hair, absently braiding it and then swiping his long fingers through the weaving to undo it, his dark eyes still on the screens, "When she is unaware of cameras watching her, anyway."

"Ha! Wonder what her fans would say if they knew she was condoning adultery," Ebony grinned evilly, shifting slightly in her seat as her energy levels shot up, "Apparently she thinks of herself as exempt from the rules she preaches on TV for Kira."

"They're just old friends chatting," Ide replied, turning from the screens to see the smirking young woman. Her switch from immaturely irritated to wickedly cunning threw him off a bit.

"No offense meant in any way, Ide-san, but Matsuda-san is right," Ebony looked at him with a slightly sad expression, "Your love life is hopeless."

"See? Ebony-chan agrees with me!" Matsuda grinned at Ide in victory, wilting slightly when Aizawa told them all to shut up.

Lawliet reached for his mug, but found it to be empty. He poked Ebony in the shoulder and she stuck her tongue out at him before getting up to get him more coffee.

"Geeze! You guys share brainwaves, or something," Matsuda remarked from his seat as Ebony reentered the room with a mug of fresh coffee in her hands, "You didn't even have to ask and Ebony-chan knew what you wanted!"

"Comes from living together for over two years, Matsuda-san. And Ryuzaki's cravings are just real predictable," Ebony grinned as she gave Lawliet his coffee, allowing him to softly brush his fingertip over her cheek in thanks before beginning to drop his many sugar cubes into the brown liquid. She had a point. The bizarre man's cravings really were quite predictable once you got to know him.

Ebony then, instead of sitting down again, walked toward the door and pulled her boots on, shrugging her coat on as well.

"Where are you going, Ebony-san?" Ide asked as she zipped up her long black coat.

"As much fun as watching Light seduce a woman is, I'd rather head out," Ebony stated as she tugged on a set of black gloves, "I'll be back later."

"You have your phone?" Lawliet asked, already knowing her answer.

"Yeah, but no guarantees that I'll hear it," Ebony shrugged, already closing the door, "Bye!"

"She seems…independent," Ide said, trying to avoid saying anything offensive with said woman's lover within hearing distance.

"I've found that when your wife says she's going to do something, it's best to let her," Lawliet replied wisely, dragging an understanding chuckle from Aizawa who was the only other person in the room who was married, "Also, she would find ways to pay me back, and her ways aren't always nonviolent."

-oooOooo-

Ebony stuffed her gloved hands into the pockets of her coat, walking aimlessly down the snowy streets. She had to admit that one of the good things about having money was that you could buy proper clothing for harsher weather. Long coats kept you so much warmer than the layers of shirts and blankets she used to wear in the cold seasons. It took a lot of convincing before she actually bought anything, but Lawliet had finally talked her into it. For someone who simply sat before computer screens, the man had an obscene amount of money. There was probably nowhere that she could go that they wouldn't be able to afford.

It had made her feel somewhat awkward to be spending his money even though he kept saying that, since they were married, it was _their_ money. In order to keep her conscience somewhat clean, she had gone back to where her father lived and dug up her fighting money. Literally. She had buried it under a few scraggly bushes out back. She'd never really thought to count the money she earned from the fights, but once she did, she realized that she had quite a bit. She could have rented a small apartment instead of living on the streets before meeting Lawliet. That showed how much of a doof she was.

'_I can't believe that woman is being so easily seduced by that prick,'_ Ebony mumbled to herself in her head, watching her breath crystallizing in the air in front of her, _'And she's supposed to be smart. Ha! Dumb as a stack of rocks, that little twit is, with a head the size of Texas.'_

Ebony rubbed her forehead, trying to redirect her uncooperative thoughts as the cold wind blew her white curls in her face.

'_Where to go, where to go?'_ She wondered, looking around to see where she'd ended up as she tucked her rebellious hair back behind her ears. She couldn't be precisely certain where she was since she was just aimlessly looking for a distraction and didn't have Lawliet for it. She giggled slightly and blushed as she recalled how, once they had gotten settled back in the headquarters, Lawliet had refused to let her out of bed all day. He hadn't even let her shower by herself. Not that she minded, of course.

'_Oh, stop being a pervert, Ebony!_' She reprimanded herself as she spotted a nightclub across the street. The music would be loud, and the people would be rowdy and most likely blitzed. That combination definitely fell under the 'distraction' category in her brain.

'_What the hell,'_ Ebony shrugged and entered the club, easily slipping by the bouncer by using a simple combination of a sweet smile and slightly lowered eyelids, ignoring the other people who complained about the bouncer letting her in while keeping everyone else out. Once she'd realized the effect she had on men, mainly by studying her husband's reactions to her, she'd learned to occasionally use it to her advantage and was welcomed with open arms almost anywhere.

-oooOooo-

Lawliet stirred more sugar into his now cold coffee, dropping the spoon noisily onto the desk once he was finished using it. Things weren't so interesting now with Ebony gone. He was already fully aware that Light was building up a relationship with Takada Kiyomi in order to use her as he pleased and then get into contact with whoever it was that he'd passed the Death Note to. 'X-Kira', was what Near called this new player in the elaborate chess game they were all intricately involved in.

It also had not escaped him that the possibility of Takada using Kira's powers in the near future in order to hide this X-Kira was very high, well into the upper nineties percentage-wise. It wouldn't be long until Light found an excuse to remove the cameras from the rooms in which he was meeting his college girlfriend, keeping the bugs in order to make everything appear to be done for the sake of the case. They would probably switch to writing their true messages to each other at that time, Light probably making Takada say things so it would look like she was turning away from Kira to aid the police in their efforts to capture him.

Not really any plans he hadn't used before, only Takada was a bit smarter than Misa. Even geniuses had patterns, hard as they were to spot sometimes.

'_She has been gone for three hours now,'_ Lawliet glanced at the reflection of the clock in his coffee, growing more and more impatient. He knew that Ebony could handle herself in almost any situation and she was still as violent as ever – when necessary of course – but he didn't like having her gone from him. He missed her calming, amusing presence, _'Perhaps she would appreciate some company.'_

With that, Lawliet stood from his chair and walked to the door to retrieve his shoes. Though Matsuda asked where he was going, he didn't answer him and merely shrugged on his coat and left the room. He pulled out a small rectangle of plastic and circuitry from his jeans pocket, hitting the button to activate it. A map of the area soon lit up the dark hallway, the glow adding mysterious-looking shadows across his face and hair. A tiny red dot pulsed steadily in the upper left corner of the screen, telling him the exact location of the young woman he was seeking.

Even if she almost never answered when wandering about, the tracker Watari had installed worked perfectly whether the phone was on or not.

-oooOooo-

Ebony sat quietly at the bar, her boot-clad foot tapping to the pounding music as she rested her chin against the back of her wrist. She had been dancing at first, being rather good at it considering her nimble feet and flexibility. She did enjoy dancing, but several men had been getting too close for comfort, so she'd retreated to the bar for some space. No one had questioned her being here even though she certainly looked underage, though of course she wasn't. Only barely, though. The bartender kept trying to flirt with her, and she allowed him to talk to her as he pleased since he was nice enough, but she kept the line very clear that she wasn't here looking for a new relationship or a one-night stand. That didn't keep other men from trying to buy her drinks, but she never accepted them.

One thing she'd learned very early in life: never accept food or drink from strangers.

Ever.

"Why're you here alone if you're not single, honey?" A different bartender was talking to her now. This one was a young woman that the men kept hitting on. Ebony had already realized that the reason why they didn't notice was probably because most of the people sitting at the bar were too wasted to walk, but the pretty woman was definitely a lesbian. She looked a bit like Tech with her pixie cut hairdo, but her hair was a pale blonde, her eyes pale green, and her skin was rather fair. She wore a white top with the sleeves ripped off and a red and black striped tie with short jean shorts, a tiny red heart tattooed on the flesh just above her left breast where her physical heart was. Ebony figured this was the type of girl she could strike up an easy friendship with. Someone who wouldn't giggle nervously like an idiot over subjects the public considered taboo.

Oddly enough, she interacted more easily with people like those she met in her days as an underground fighter as long as they weren't a lecher or a dumb-ass prostitute.

"Just distracting myself," Ebony shrugged, taking a sip of the simple soda the lady bartender had so graciously gotten for her. Her name was Tiffany, escaping conservative America for the more open-minded thinking of Japan, "Spying on someone gets boring when you already know they're guilty."

"You a detective or something?" Tiffany asked, waving off another delusional man going through a midlife crisis.

"No, but my husband is," Ebony replied, slipping a Twix bar out of her holster and tearing the shiny wrapping, "Trying to nail some homicidal twit, but he's good at covering his ass."

"Homicidal twit like Kira?" Tiffany asked, flicking a strand of blonde hair out of her sea foam eyes.

"Yep," Ebony sighed, slumping onto her crossed arms resting on the bar with a pronounced pout, "Kira's a bigger twit, though."

"I know what you mean. He killed off my girlfriend just because she got caught with some drug dealers. She wasn't even buying, they were hassling her and she got caught up in the bust," Tiffany sighed and glanced at Ebony, "Really is such a pity. You're damn cute."

"Thank you," Ebony grinned, "You are too. And I'm sorry about your girlfriend. What was her name?"

"Kendi. She was so gentle," Tiffany sighed as she thought back on her deceased lover who had died a little over a year ago, "She didn't deserve death."

"Many of Kira's victims don't," Ebony mumbled around Twix, tapping her finger against the shiny finish of the bar.

"Pervert at 2 o'clock, hon," Tiffany murmured to her as she slipped away, going to serve some other already wasted men.

"Ebony!"

Ebony nearly choked on her Twix bar, having to take a few deep breaths before her composure returned. She turned to her side and visibly winced.

"Amori-san?" Ebony almost didn't recognize him, but he definitely looked different when he was drunk. His usually sleek and stylish appearance was disheveled from dancing and alcohol and probably a few quickies in a dark corner or a bathroom or closet, "You're very drunk," She stated bluntly.

"Not too bad," He refuted, brushing a few strands of wavy dark hair from his hazel eyes, "I'm sober enough to recognize you. I'm surprised, though. Didn't figure you for the type to hang out in a place like this."

"You don't know me, Amori-san," Ebony turned away though she kept him – more specifically his hands – in her peripheral vision as she took a sip of her soda. She shooed his hand away when her guesses proved true, "Amori-san, please leave me alone. If you must know, I'm married," She held up her left hand, showing him the simple, pretty ring around her finger.

"Really?" Yukio reached for her hand to examine the ring, but she pulled it away, not wanting to be touched by the man who had pursued her for months when she worked in that small bakery before meeting Lawliet, and later even tried to take advantage of her grief when she'd thought Lawliet was dead. He then smirked and she knew her evening was shot to Hell, "You sure he's the right man for you?"

"She's very certain."

Ebony gasped and spun around. Despite the impossibility of the current situation, her face broke into a wide grin.

Lawliet stood behind her, his very intimidating eyes never straying from the bold man harassing his lover. The blinking, multi-colored lights reflected off his pale visage and white shirt, casting shadows on his face that most would find eerie while Ebony found them completely enticing. His hands were still tucked safely away in his jeans pockets and he still stood in his seemingly frail, Hunchback of Notre Dome stance, his hair sprawled out in wild spikes about his head just like always.

"Lawliet!" Ebony's grin widened further as her husband slipped a long arm around her small waist, his pale hand gently squeezing her hip, "What are you doing here?"

"Headquarters was very uninteresting after you left," He answered, still staring at Yukio with his disturbingly wide eyes.

"How'd you even get in here?" Ebony asked. Lawliet wasn't exactly the type of person people would let in anywhere if they could help it.

"This place is fairly easy to sneak into, love," Lawliet replied, "If you hadn't noticed, there are plenty of underage children here as well."

"Yeah, I did notice."

"You're married to _him_?" Yukio asked, disbelief clear in his slightly slurred voice. He then laughed, ear-grating guffaws that drew attention to them, "No wonder you came here! Looking for a real man?"

The dark eyed man sighed quietly. All he'd really planned on was getting his wife out of this club and back to headquarters. He hadn't planned on getting in any confrontations at all, but he would not simply stand by while a drunken man was trying to take what was his. Lawliet searched through his vast memory bank, pulling up a matching face, and a name and history from there.

Amori Yukio was the son of a man who owned a rather large advertising company that made millions of dollars and was one of the most sought after advertising agents in Japan. Yukio himself worked alongside his father and was more than likely going to take his father's job when he retired. More intimate information told of his many sexual partners and attraction to girls who would bring more attention to him, especially if the girl was highly desirable. Lawliet knew that Ebony was exactly the type of girl Yukio would love to have on his arm to show off to the world. Young, exotically beautiful, and pursued by many.

Unfortunately for him, Ebony was not available in any way, shape, or form.

"If that were true, which is 100 percent impossible, she apparently came to the wrong place," Lawliet replied to the question he'd asked his wife. Ebony looked at him, her face very surprised. While his tone stayed in its normal calm timbre, it was a bit darker and his large eyes were slightly narrowed, a clear threat to even the dumbest of people. She felt her face flush slightly and couldn't help but smile a little at how he blatantly defended her honor while simultaneously insulting the irritating man before them. Lawliet was never so direct in his approach, usually quite a passive aggressive person.

"Why you little shit!!" Yukio took two steps forward, all that was needed since he was very tall, and swung a fist in the detective's direction. Lawliet easily avoided the blow, stepping to the side while Yukio stumbled past him.

"That's quite a man you got there, honey," Tiffany commented, bringing Ebony back to reality a bit, "A bit weird, though."

"Yeah, he's pretty weird, alright," Ebony giggled as Yukio threw another punch at Lawliet, who again dodged it easily, "But that's why I love him. He's just too adorable!"

"Then you better never let him go," Tiffany said, suddenly very serious. Ebony glanced over to her in confusion, "There aren't many men like him who would fight another man in defense of his lover, hon. Most fights like these are just from jealousy."

"I know," Ebony nodded and turned back to the 'fight', smiling warmly at her bizarre husband.

She then giggled when Lawliet bent completely backwards to avoid another of Yukio's flailing punches. It was only just then that he removed his hands from his pockets to place them on the floor now above his head, continuing his motion to bring entire body up over his head until his feet hit the floor again, leaving him out of Yukio's easy reach. The people now gathered around them – drawn to the possibility of a fight – gasped at the detective's physical prowess since he didn't look to hold a single bit of grace in his body at all. Even Yukio gaped in shock at the younger man.

"Ebony, can we leave now?" Lawliet asked, cocking his head in her direction though his gaze never left the hazel eyed man before him, "This is getting quite monotonous."

Yukio didn't like being brushed off so easily. Not in the least bit. He stepped forward and threw yet another punch. However, he hadn't expected Lawliet to grab his wrist and flip him over his bony hip, sending him to the floor on his back faster than he could blink and forcing the air from his lungs. His face burned in humiliation that he could feel even through the alcohol clouding his brain, especially when Lawliet wiped his hands on his jeans like he'd just touched something nasty.

"I'd love to," Ebony hopped down off the barstool and waved to the blonde woman behind the bar, "Bye, Tiffany. It was great meeting you."

"You too, hon. Hey!" She called Lawliet's attention and placed her hands on her hips, "You better take good care of this girl. Got it, buddy?"

Lawliet gave his small grin which always transformed his whole face, "Yes. I intend to."

"Good," Tiffany nodded at him and smiled, waving them off.

"Hey!" Yukio had finally managed to pick himself up off the floor, following the retreating couple, "No one does that to me! No one-"

Finally having had enough of this man, Lawliet dropped down and drove his heel up under Yukio's jaw. The other man fell to the floor and everyone gathered around, waiting for him to rise again.

He didn't.

He was out cold.

…And both the albino girl and the bizarre man she was married to had slipped easily out the door before anyone could blink.

"I can't believe you just got into a bar fight!" Ebony laughed as she clung lovingly to her husband's arm once they were outside. She rested her cheek against his shoulder and grinning widely up at him, using his arm as support since her legs were weak from laughing so hard, "That's like Light being capable of loving a woman!"

"What else would I have done?" Lawliet asked, his dark eyes cornering to the sugar haired girl at his side, "He was insinuating that you would stoop to adultery. I was not about to allow someone to say such a degrading thing about you. If this situation were to come up again, my actions would be the same. I love you too much to allow someone to sully your name in such ways."

"Thank you," Ebony's smile turned from amused to warm in a heartbeat. Her ability to rebound between emotions still astounded him to this day, "It means a lot for you to defend me like that."

They remained walking in silence for a while, simply enjoying each other's company. The streets were rather empty considering the freezing temperature this time of year, which suited the relaxed couple just fine. Noises of other people would have ruined the peaceful mood.

"Lawliet?"

"Yes?"

"I've been meaning to ask for some time, but…I kept putting it off…"

"…What is it you wish to ask of me?" Lawliet glanced down at her, seeing how the falling snowflakes blended in with her sugar hair. It was odd for her to be hesitant in her questions. It was either ask or say nothing with her.

"I was wondering….how it was that you came to live at the Wammy's House?" She finally asked, sensing the sudden tension in the young man beside her, "How did Watari find you?"

Lawliet paused for a moment in the middle of the sidewalk, looking up at the darkened sky. It seemed like the earth itself was holding its breath as it waited for the young detective to answer, the only movement being the water crystals falling from the sky and the cold wind dancing through their hair. Ebony almost wished she hadn't asked as she watched the minute changes in his face, a skill she had perfected when changes in a person's face were the difference between food and starvation, clothing and exposure, life and death. Though no one would be able to tell, and even she still had some trouble reading his face, she knew that Lawliet was in agony. He even seemed to be slumping more than usual as though a heavy burden once shoved aside had reestablished a comfortable perch on his already overtaxed shoulders.

"I did have a family," Lawliet suddenly said, the abruptness of his statement catching Ebony off guard after having stood in total silence for probably ten whole minutes. His dark eyes were far away, reliving old memories that Ebony could only attempt to recreate in her own mind, "Back when I was still very small…"

* * *

Author's Note: I know Mel1983 had a bar scene too, but I wanted to put in a fight scene really, really bad! I couldn't resist. Also, just so you know, the next chapter will be purely in memory form, so don't get confused. I know the last line is just killing you all. Hee!

**Timekeeper101:** I'm sorry I couldn't let Light openly freak out here, but I hope his frantic thoughts were alright.

**KaiSea:** I'm glad you like Matt. I was disappointed with his lack of screen time on the show and in the manga too. He's just so cool!

**warning746:** Thanks for pointing out how L's name would have been in Rem's Death Note, which Light had. I missed that part. You saved my butt there with your review. Thank you so much.

**Kit-Kat Punk Lover:** Your name is so funny! I love Kit-Kat bars! Oh, and I liked your review too. Thank you!

**Ororhippus:** Yes, I thought the ending was cool by using L's very first line. Well, not the very first one, but the first one in which you see his face. You know what I mean.

**Marisol Akyri:** I love seeing your reviews since you've been reviewing my story since the first one. They make me so happy.:)

**Hahyn Girl: **Sorry that you're going to die of curiosity in this chapter too. Wait, I lied. I'm not sorry. I love making my reviewers suffer like this! Hee!

**Alexandritee:** Yeah, I imagined Mello liking kids. I don't think he's very good at actually dealing with them, but I think he would like them as long as someone else is there to do the majority of taking care of them.

**Fizzwizzler:** Yay! I made someone have to muffle themselves with a pillow! Ha!

**SomeOtherPerson:** Where do I go for that picture? You didn't say...

**Madeline Cullen:** I can't be so forgiving to Light. Yes, I understand the almost multiple personality disorder thing going on, but I just want to humiliate him so bad! I can't help it! I'm a sadistic little demon wench. (and very proud of it too)

**xlostinmyownworldx:** Being run over by an 18 wheeler and stampeded by 200 cows does sound painful, but not humiliating enough. It gave me a good chuckle, though. Thank you!

**MythCreatorWriter:** Yes. It is now an all out war. And yeah, Light will have to retaliate at some point, but I haven't figured out anything yet. Any ideas?

**RyokoUri:** I love it when Light's totally clueless too. It makes you go 'Ha, ha! In your face, you loony!' Well, _I_ do that, anyway...

animeskippergirl: You're here reading more, I hope? Does this please you too?

**Lunarobi Pride:** Thanks for the info on your name. I like to ask since I learn new things and get new ideas. I hope you like this chapter too.

**TheMythOfNormality:** L was never in a wheelchair. He was in a wheeled chair. You know, those ones people love to spin around in? I'm sorry if that confused you. It was completely unintentional. And you aren't stupid. It's an understandable mistake.

**IvoryCrayon:** Yes! I have missed you! I'm glad you liked Mello's kid thing even though that's not how you envisioned him. I'm not making him a kid wizard, though. He likes them alright, but he's not so good at dealing with them. Is that good?

**ActionFry:** Yeah, I wanted their kid to be named after Rem since I always liked Rem and felt so bad for her when Light tricked her into killing herself for Misa. I wanted to smack him. Still do, as a matter of fact...

Please review for me. Also, if anyone has any ideas for how Light should retaliate to L's attack on him, please post them. I'd love to hear them since I'm having a bit of a creativity block in that department.

-HaleyJo


	15. The Story of L Lawliet

Author's Note: Ok, this will probably be a tear-jerker. I'm sure the only reason I didn't cry is because I wrote the thing, so I was already prepared. Please enjoy. Wow, that sounded weird...

* * *

**15. STORY OF L LAWLIET**

_A beautiful young woman lovingly held a small, four year old girl in her arms as she sat comfortably in the city park. It was a beautiful day, absolutely perfect for enjoying the outdoors, even if it was still a bit nippy out. She tucked an errant strand of blonde hair back behind her ear, smiling gently at the bouncing girl in her arms. They were obviously mother and daughter since they shared the same sky blue eyes and blonde hair. The little girl's hair was a paler blonde, but that was to be expected since she was still so young._

_The woman's name was Abegayle Moira Lawliet, formally Abegayle Moira Miller before marrying her husband of six years, Kendall Otis Lawliet. It had seemed like their marriage was a match made in Heaven, the perfect relationship. But after their young daughter, Billie Ladonna Lawliet, was born, things had steadily been growing worse and worse. Kendall was distant, spent more time with his police buddies rather than helping her to take care of _their_ child. Abegayle had felt herself slowly going numb to the things around her. The only thing that brought her any joy in her life anymore was her cute little daughter._

"_Now, don't wander too far, Billie," Abegayle set her little girl down so that she could go and play with the other children. She followed her daughter's movements carefully, fitting perfectly into the roll of the protective new mother. Billie had many friends, her happy-go-lucky, outgoing demeanor able to charm anyone around her. She had yet to come across a person that she couldn't make smile._

"_Good morning."_

_Abegayle looked up, seeing a young man with dark hair and eyes standing by the bench, smiling pleasantly at her. Like most men of the time, his hair was combed back neatly and not a piece of his clothing was out of place._

"_Mind if I sit?" He asked, indicating the spot next to her._

"_Not at all," Abegayle smiled back as the admittedly attractive man sat down beside her, "I didn't catch your name?"_

"_Elliot Andrews," He introduced himself, "And your name?"_

"_Abegayle," She held out her hand to shake his, "Abegayle Lawliet."_

"_Lovely name," Elliot complimented with another charming smile as he looked toward the children. She noticed that his eyes crinkled pleasantly at the corners when he smiled and told herself that anyone would notice, "One of them yours?"_

"_Yes. The little girl in the white dress and blue coat, with the pigtails," Abegayle pointed toward her daughter, "Her name is Billie. She turned four just a month ago."_

"_She's adorable," His smiles just never seemed to run out as he turned to her again, "I suppose I should expect nothing less. You could only produce beautiful children."_

_Abegayle blushed slightly, feeling a fluttering sensation in her abdomen that she hadn't felt in a long, long time…_

_-oooOooo-_

"_Have a good day?"_

"_Yes. Just same old, same old. A bit boring, actually."_

_Abegayle smiled innocently at her husband as he came through the door, hanging his coat up in the closet in the foyer and removing the bullets from his work-issued gun just in case Billie got a hold of it. She could see the slight suspicion behind his pale brown eyes, but he didn't ask her anything more. She turned away and bit her lip, pushing down the guilt she'd been beginning to feel over the past two months, almost wishing he would ask. She shook her head slightly, smiling down at her daughter when she came to greet her, hugging her legs excitedly._

"_Can I see Mr. Andrews again soon?" Billie asked, grinning adorably up at her mother, "I like him."_

"_I like him too, Billie," Abegayle reached down and lifted Billie into her arms, supporting her on her hip, "How about I take you to see him tomorrow?"_

"_Yay!" Billie threw her little arms around her mother's neck and squeezed tightly, "I can show him my new picture! Did I show you, Mommy? I don't think I did. I'll go get it!"_

_Abegayle continued smiling for her daughter as she set her down so she could stumble to her bedroom for whatever picture she'd drawn that she'd probably shown off already. She was determinedly ignoring the guilt eating away at her stomach. Denial was such an amazingly, disturbingly effect tool…_

_-oooOooo-_

"_Elliot?"_

"_Hmm?"_

_Abegayle bit her lip as she sat up, holding the recently used bed sheets over her chest. She took in a deep breath and let it out slowly, preparing herself for what she was about to say. She might not be a genius, but she was already certain of his reaction._

"_I….I think I'm pregnant."_

_The serene atmosphere vanished instantly, Elliot looking at his secret lover with widened eyes. He began to shake his head, sitting up now as well. Abegayle's heart sank in her chest._

"_I'm not intending to be a father," He said, still shaking his head, "I love you, Abby, but I don't want children. I never have."_

"…_I know," Abegayle nodded. Even though she'd been as prepared as she could be, his words still hurt, "I…I just thought you should know…"_

"_Yeah…" Elliot rose from the bed and began to get dressed, never looking back at her once he was fully clothed and exiting the room, shutting the door behind him without any hesitation. Abegayle bowed her head and cried softly, wondering what she was going to do now as she watched the droplets of saline water leaving dark spots on the bed sheets…_

_-oooOooo-_

"_What do you mean it's not my child?!"_

_Abegayle winced as her husband yelled at her, pointing at the minor swelling of her abdomen. She couldn't bear to look at him, not while she felt so disgusting and low. She did not deserve to look into his eyes._

"_I'm sorry, Kenny," Abegayle managed to mumble, instinctively curling her hands over her slightly protruding abdomen as she watched her sandal-clad toes, "I'm so sorry. I didn't-"_

_**Slap**__!!_

_Abegayle held a hand to her throbbing cheek, tears welling in her sky blue eyes. She turned back toward her husband in shock, unable to believe that he'd actually just…hit her…_

"_Get rid of it!" Kendall exclaimed, glaring at her abdomen like it was something foul and evil._

"_I-I can't do that!" Abegayle exclaimed, shocked that he'd actually said such a thing. She wrapped the entirety of both her arms around her belly to protect it from his increasing wrath, "It's a baby! That's murder!"_

"_I don't care!" He hit her again, causing her to yelp and stumble back a few steps into the kitchen counter, "Just get rid of it!!"_

_With that, he stormed off, leaving his wife shocked, confused, conflicted, and hurt in the kitchen. She still held a trembling hand to her cheek, tears spilling down her face. She choked out a sob as she slid down the counter, falling to her knees in the middle of the kitchen._

"_Mommy?" She turned to see Billie standing in the doorway, her pale blonde hair mussed up from sleep but her crystal blue eyes completely alert and concerned for her, "Why're you crying?"_

_Abegayle didn't say anything, merely invited the little girl closer. Though she didn't really know what was going on, Billie did her best to comfort her distressed mother, not liking it when she wasn't smiling…_

_-oooOooo-_

"_You need to push, Mrs. Lawliet! Push!"_

"_I am!"_

_Abegayle screamed, pushing hard as she gripped the metal bars of the hospital cot she was laying in. This baby was being a bit stubborn, not too eager to leave the womb, it seemed. She had been in labor for the entire day and nothing seemed to be changing. She knew her husband was sitting reluctantly in the waiting room with their daughter, the only reason for him being here was because Billie had wanted to meet the new child to whom she would soon be a big sister. She knew that Kendall hated this baby, had hated it ever since he discovered it wasn't his. She even hated it too, beginning to blame it for breaking apart her marriage. If it weren't for this baby, her life wouldn't be falling apart like it was._

_She gasped and with one hard push, the baby was finally out…_

…_And it didn't scream…_

"_Is it dead?" She asked as a nurse mopped the sweat from her forehead. It almost sounded like she hoped it was._

"_No. Congratulations, Mrs. Lawliet. It's a boy," The doctor smiled, though it seemed forced, as though he knew she had no interest in the baby he had just helped her to deliver, "He's perfectly healthy. A little on the skinny side, but just fine otherwise."_

_Once the baby was cleaned up and wrapped in a fluffy, sky blue blanket, a nurse placed the tiny life into its mother's hesitant arms. She stared at the baby, so many emotions whirling around in her head and fighting for dominance in her face._

"_Mommy, Mommy!" Billie burst into the hospital room in which her mother was staying after successfully giving birth, running up to the side of the bed and hopping up and down in a failing attempt to see the baby. Failing because she was still so small, "Is that it? Is that my new sister or brother?"_

"_Y…yes," Abegayle quickly passed the child to her daughter, unwilling to even touch it._

"_Hello, little baby," Billie cooed to the child, cocking her head to the side slightly, "He stares a lot."_

_She was right. The tiny baby boy was simply staring at his big sister with wide, gunmetal colored eyes with abnormally dilated pupils. His skin was pale as a cloud and the hair she could see peeking out from under his little blue cap was black as fresh ink. A thumb was being sucked very deliberately into his toothless mouth, his highly intelligent eyes analyzing this new world he'd been forced into. He eventually lost interest in the third weird creature to hold him with some pale, floppy substance sprouting from its head and looked around the room, taking everything in with an inquisitive gaze._

"_What's his name?" Billie asked her mother as she rocked her baby brother gently in her arms. She had been absolutely ecstatic when she learned she was going to be a big sister, talking about all the games they would play and how they'd go to the park every day no matter what the weather was like. It was clear to everyone that she would be the big sister every kid wanted._

"_He doesn't have one," Abegayle turned away. She couldn't even look at the thing she'd just finished expelling from her body._

"_Oh…" Though young, Billie felt that something was wrong. But like all small children, she brushed it off and looked back at her brother, "Well, what will we call you, baby brother? You can't have no name."_

_The tiny boy finally reestablished eye contact with his half-sister, still sucking on his thumb relentlessly. He analyzed her carefully, taking in every detail of her face, hair, and clothing. Billie went over the many things she could name him. She watched his oddly controlled motions carefully, seeing how his tiny index finger was slightly uncurled from the rest of them. With his thumb in his mouth and his first finger slightly extended, it almost looked like he was signing an…_

"_L!" Billie grinned and kissed her brother's baby soft cheek, hugging him close, "Your name is L! L Lawliet!"_

_-oooOooo-_

"_Stop dragging your feet, L! It'll take us forever to get to the park at this rate!"_

_Billie looked down at the little boy she was tugging along by his hand. He was wearing clothing that was a bit too big for him since his parents couldn't be bothered to buy him clothes that fit properly. His pitch black hair hung in complete neglect around his head, falling over his large, dark eyes. His thumb seemed glued to his lips even after having four years to be rid of the habit and his small, white teeth gnawed carefully on the nail. He walked with a bit of a hunch due to lack of medical help after having fallen out of his second-story bedroom window and into the briar patch by their back porch a little over five months ago._

…_While his legal father Kendall had been in the room…_

"_Billie, why do you insist upon us going to the park?" His eloquent way of speaking still creeped her out sometimes even though she already knew that her baby brother was dizzyingly intelligent. The words being formed from such a little voice made it even creepier, "You are well aware that I will simply sit on the park bench while you play with your friends."_

"_Would you rather stay home?" She asked._

"_No. They hate me," L stated, not seeming affected by the harshness of his own words. Billie bit her lip and suddenly stooped down to lift her four year old brother up off the pavement. She felt one of his arms wrap around her shoulders, the other still pressing his thumb to his lips._

"_You know that's not your fault, right?" Billie asked, squeezing her brother affectionately._

"_Yes," L nodded, looking around at the pathway he'd already memorized. He could find his way to the park by himself if he wanted to, even if he was only four, "But I still wish they would be happy."_

"_Yeah," Billie sighed sadly as she continued carrying her genius baby brother. There was nothing she cared about in the entire world more than him, "I do too."_

_-oooOooo-_

_L sat quietly in his small, sparsely furnished bedroom, a large dictionary lying open on the wooden floor by his bare feet. It was a Japanese dictionary. He found other languages quite intriguing and was determined to learn as many as possible. Despite his age of only some months under five, he had already learned Spanish and Chinese, moving on to Japanese now and Swedish after this one. Perhaps Portuguese soon after._

_The small boy didn't jump when a loud boom of thunder resounded outside, followed quickly by a sharp crack of lightning. It had been raining off and on all day, but now it had turned into a full fledged storm. Rain fell in buckets outside, sounding like millions of rocks were falling onto the roof instead of water. His dark eyes watched the rippling shadows that were thrown across the floor and walls from the rain rushing down the glass of the bedroom window, momentarily mesmerized by the erratic patterns before returning to his book, turning the page with his index finger and thumb._

_After seeing how his fingers left patterned marks of oil on anything he touched, he found that it irked him for whatever reason. A pet peeve, if you will. So he tried to touch things as little as possible so as to avoid leaving those irritating marks._

_With another crack of lightning, the power suddenly went out, leaving L in darkness. Faint light from the window helped him to see somewhat, but not enough to continue reading._

'_**Seems I will have to locate a flashlight,'**__ L thought to himself as he stood from his odd crouch and approached the door. He'd never really sat normally to begin with, but now he sat this way mostly because it helped to lessen the pain still afflicting his crippled spinal column. Billie would sometimes massage his back to help alleviate the pain, but it always came back later on._

_The thunder and lightning had hidden it at first, but now that he was closer to the door, the almost five-year-old could hear the sounds of his mother and Kendall fighting again. In the kitchen, it sounded like. It seemed like the argument was about him again, about how his mother was a whore and that she should have gotten rid of her bastard child before it could be born._

''_**It','**__ L repeated in his head, growing to hate that word more and more every day, __**''It' refers to something without a gender. I am a 'he'.'**_

_Suddenly, his bedroom door burst open, just narrowly avoiding hitting him square in the nose. L jumped back as his sister stumbled into the room, locking the door securely behind her. Her blonde hair was out of its normal pigtails and she wore her favorite teddy bear covered pajamas, signaling that she had been sleeping, or at least trying to. The door hadn't been shut quickly enough to block out the gargling, bloodcurdling scream that resounded from the floor below._

"_Billie?" L moved to look his sister in the face, not at all comfortable with how she seemed absolutely terrified, "Billie, are you ok?"_

_Billie suddenly dropped to her knees, placing both hands on her little brother's slumped shoulders. Her nearly ten year old body quaked horribly, her sky blue eyes wide and watering at the corners._

"_Listen to me, L," Billie said, making sure she had her brother's undivided attention, "Please listen to me. You need to go out the window and hide up in the tree house, ok? Do you hear me?"_

"_Yes, but where are you going?" L asked, already piecing everything together in his quick mind, "You are not coming with me?"_

"_No, but I'll be fine. I promise. You just promise to stay put until I come to get you, alright?" Billie gripped his shoulders tighter, "You hear those bells, L?"_

"…_Yes," L nodded, just barely able to pick out the sounds of the bells from the nearby church over the pounding rain, booming thunder, and crackling lightning. Or was that a tree branch falling? "I hear them."_

"_You stay put in that tree house until I come to get you, you hear?" Billie implored, "I'll come for you as soon as the bells stop, I promise. Just promise me you won't move until I come to get you down, ok? Please, L."_

"_Ok," L allowed Billie to pick him up and set him on the window ledge, grunting as she heaved the window open and allowing the sounds of the storm to magnify tenfold. He grasped her hands as she placed him on the branch of the tree that grew by the window. It was lucky he was so thin, otherwise the branch would have cracked under his weight. The freezing rain seemed to pierce right through his clothing, stinging his flesh so badly it almost felt like it was skinning him alive, "After the bells stop?"_

"_Yes. I promise," Billie nodded and let go of his hands, stepping back into the bedroom, "I love you, L."_

"…_Love you too, Billie," L whispered back, his gut forcing him to say it even though he'd never said such a thing before, like this was his last chance to say it. _

_Crawling like a predator on the branch, L came to the trunk and attempted to climb down the tree. He slipped on the last stretch, falling hard onto the earth and very thankful that the ground was so soft from all the rain. Shaking his sopping hair off his forehead so he could see better, L scrambled up and stumbled to the forest lining their backyard. In one of the sturdiest trees at the border to their property, there was a rickety tree house wrapped around the trunk and branches. It had been built before he was born and Billie took him up there all the time, both children using it to escape the sounds of their fighting parents._

_Taking a deep breath, L awkwardly climbed the planks of wood nailed to the tree acting as a ladder to the trapdoor on the tree house's floor. Once inside, L backed up into the corner and sank into his usual crouch. But instead of sitting still and biting his thumb like usual, L wrapped his thin arms around his legs and rocked back and forth, staring out the window. He could make out the silhouette of the bell tower of the church just a few blocks away. He fixed his gaze upon it, listening to the bells, counting the tolls, counting the seconds, the minutes, the hours…._

_Something fragile inside him broke when the bells stopped…._

…_.and Billie didn't come to get him…_

"_They're still ringing," He mumbled into his folded arms, unknowingly forcing his mind to continue replaying the sounds of the bells again and again and again, "She'll come. The bells haven't stopped yet. She'll come…"_

_-oooOooo-_

"_Mary, mother of God…!"_

_A tall police man stared at the crime scene, sixteen years of experience still having not prepared him for something like this._

_Kendall Lawliet lay dead in the living room, a gun in his hand and a bullet hole under his jaw. The rather expensive carpet beneath him was saturated with his life's liquid. His wife Abegayle lay in the kitchen in a pool of blood, also dead, with her throat slit open. The worst was the innocent little girl dead on the stairwell, her throat slit like her mother's and her blood painting the dark wood stairs and the floral wallpaper in angled spurts, clearly showing the violence behind the act._

_She would have been turning ten today…_

_The officer shook his head, heading throughout the house in search of anyone else that might have been there. Family friends or the girl's playmates, for example. The search was clean, so he exited the house when the CSI team came to draw conclusions on exactly what had happened here._

_He already knew how this would play out. It was obvious that Kendall had snapped and murdered his family, taking his own life soon after. In the public eye, however, it would be spun off as a robbery gone bad since Kendall was so well-liked by the people of this small community and so many felt they owed him for his good work as a police officer._

"_Hey, Chief!"_

_The tall man turned, seeing some people surrounding a rickety old tree house in the back. It was amazing that it was still standing after that storm last night. One officer was halfway through the trapdoor and coming down, a somber expression on his face._

"_I think you wanna take a look at this, Chief."_

_Curious, the police chief took the officer's place and climbed up the wooden planks, pushing the trapdoor up and sticking his head in._

_In the farthest corner of the tree house, a small, almost sickly pale boy sat curled up like a dead cockroach, rocking incessantly back and forth, making the damp floorboards creak with his every movement. That was probably what had tipped people off to his presence up here. Messy black hair lay matted against his head by rain and mud, the liquid dirt caking him from his bare feet to his knees, some on his right shoulder and cheek. Large black eyes stared out the window, never blinking, never moving. The boy couldn't be older than four or five years old._

"_Hey, kid," The police chief climbed fully up into the tree house and approached the traumatized boy, kneeling beside him, "Kid, what's your name? Are you ok? Are you hurt? Did you see anything that happened in that house?"_

"…"

_The boy just continued to rock back and forth, never looking away from the window. Not a single sound escaped his lips, not a single change could be seen in his face pale._

_The little boy didn't react at all when he was lifted into the police man's arms, his mud-caked body soiling the man's spotless blue uniform. The men still on the ground stared sadly at the small boy in their chief's arms, all wondering who he was and why he'd been hiding up in the Lawliet's tree house._

_-oooOooo-_

_L stared vacantly at the white wall across from him, nibbling delicately on his thumbnail. He had counted very carefully how long he had been here and recited the number often._

'_**Two years, ten months, twenty-six days, nineteen hours, fifty-eight minutes, forty-eight seconds, forty-nine, fifty, fifty-one, fifty-two, fifty-three…'**_

_He was only in this hospital because he refused to speak to anyone or do anything, but these people were really quite incompetent. They believed he didn't move, never did anything but sit and nibble on his thumb. He always read the books they left in his room to entice him into movement. It wasn't his fault that he read them so quickly that they thought he didn't when they came back to find the books closed, seemingly unread. And it wasn't his fault that they never watched the security cameras keeping an eye on him so he wouldn't hurt himself._

_He found it quite odd when the door to his padded room started to open. His meal had already been brought to him some time ago, taken away still mostly full not long after that. Mealtime and flimsy attempts at interaction first thing in the morning and last thing at night were the only times anyone came to see him. His eyes moved sluggishly toward the door, mildly curious as to who was going to enter today._

_It was a tall, middle aged man with oval glasses. He wore a neat black suit and had a black hat on his head, a clear indicator that he wasn't a doctor here since they always wore white lab coats. L didn't really know why, but he suddenly felt a bit calmer. Since his gut was always right, he decided to just go with it._

_One point for him._

"_Hello," The man said, standing in the middle of the room instead of making any moves to approach him. Two points for him, "My name is Quillish Wammy. I hear you won't share yours."_

"…_."_

"_I'm here because I don't believe you belong in this place, my young friend," The man named Quillish continued, regardless of whether the boy – made sickly and weak by isolation – was listening to him or not, "Your intelligence is remarkably high for someone your age. Even for people far above your age. I would like to offer to take you away from this place, to be around other children who share talents like yours."_

"…"

"_I'll give you the night to think on it," Quillish said after a long moment of silence, walking out the door. He wasn't pressing him. Three points for this Quillish Wammy person, "I'll return here tomorrow morning for your decision."_

_The silence rang loudly in his small ears after the man left. L rolled his proposition around in his head, admittedly intrigued by the idea of meeting people that thought like he did. Then again, the idea of being around other children was equally as appalling. All any other children had ever done was pick on him and even beat him up on occasion before Billie would chase them off. Would this place – an orphanage from the sounds of it – really be any different?_

_Then again, this Quillish Wammy had gained three points in two minutes while no one else had gained even a fraction of a point in two years…_

_-oooOooo-_

"_I'm L."_

_Quillish Wammy smiled beneath his moustache at the small boy who stood hunched over in the middle of the padded room that had been his home for the last two years, ten months, and twenty-seven days. The time had been causing the child to waste away. His clothing hung more limply from his form than before as his weight continued to drop. The dark circles under his eyes had grown darker and darker as his sleeping came less and less from nightmares that caused him to bolt upright screaming in terror until he avoided sleep like the plague. He only slept when his body finally quite literally collapsed under him, sending him into a sleep too deep to dream._

_He damaged his body in these ways strictly for that goal. Though young, he knew deep sleep meant no dreams._

_Which meant no nightmares._

"_Chivvy along, then, L," Quillish ushered the small, seven-going-on-eight year old boy to follow him, leading him away from the padded white room, "We have quite a lot to discuss, you and I."_

_The boy listened silently as Quillish Wammy told him about the orphanage he'd founded called the Wammy's House. It indeed sounded a tenfold better than the psychiatric hospital he'd been confined in for almost three years now. L decided that he didn't much care where he went as long as he could stay with Mr. Wammy. As little as he knew about the man, he found himself becoming attached to him rather easily, and unlike other traumatized children, he didn't fight the process. He had resolved to follow his instincts no matter where they led him after not doing so had cost him his sister._

"_Mr. Wammy," The boy suddenly spoke up from the back seat of the dark car, somewhat startling the kindly man, "Would you please take me to the cemetery?"_

"…_Of course, L," Quillish nodded, turning onto a different road. Things were silent as they drove to the cemetery, slowing once they arrived._

_Quillish followed L this time as the small boy took the lead, slightly adjusting the winter coat and scarf Quillish had brought to him for the cold weather outside that he hadn't felt in so long. L stopped at a smallish grave, curling down into his crouched posture before it. He reached out to trace his thin fingers over the engraved lettering._

_Here Lies_

_Billie Ladonna Lawliet_

_1971-1981_

_Beloved Daughter_

'_**His sister,'**__ Quillish concluded. He had suspected that L was an unknown child of Abegayle Lawliet, and this just confirmed it. He couldn't even begin to imagine what it must have been like to lose his entire family all in one night, especially the only person who had actually cared about him and not seen him as a mistake or a mark of shame._

_L then stood and hugged the gravestone, the last act of affection he would ever show until almost twenty years later. After standing there for a moment, he turned and walked back to the middle aged man, looking up at him with wide, resigned eyes and lifting his hand for Quillish to take._

"_Ok, we can go now," Something else seemed to collapse just a bit inside the small boy as snow began falling from the sky, "I just needed to say goodbye."_

* * *

Author's Note: So now you all know who Billie was. Billie from chapter 40 of Notebook 1 in Watari's flashback of L spacing out on the roof during a rainstorm. So how was the story of his past? Did you all like it?

**Madeline Cullen:** Yeah, Light knows L's surname is Lawliet, but he can't kill him with just his surname. That's why Rem took the page she'd used to write down his name. But hospital files wouldn't be hard for Light to hack. Remember that he hacked Soichiro's computer at the very beginning of the investigation.

**Orohippus:** I know what you mean. In some ways I don't hate Takada, but she's such a smug bitch and is so easily manipulated that I can't at all respect her. It is nice to have a non-shrieky female unlike Misa, but Takada's still a bitch.

**LXZAIDE4EVA:** As much fun as those methods sound, they wouldn't work in this story. They sure would be hilarious to see, though... Oh yeah, and I love your signature off. "L IS MINE, MINE I SAY, MINE, MWAHAHAHAHAHAHA X3 XD". That's hilarious!

**Fizzwizzler:** I like Tiffany too. I want to do an AU Death Note fic one day, and I plan to use her then.

**Timekeeper101:** I hope you like this interpretation of L's past. I wanted to put Yukio in here since he chased her so much before. It seemed to work out just fine for L to beat up someone Ebony kind of knew rather than a stranger. Makes it funnier!

**ActionFry:** Yeah, I had to end it there. It was too perfect cliffhanger not to use. So torturous!

**Alexandritee:** Yes, I always imagine Mello as the kind of person who has a soft spot for kids but is completely clueless on how to deal with them. Makes it so much cuter! I hope you like this chapter too even though it's sad.

**MythCreatorWriter:** Thank you for the ideas on how Light could possibly retaliate. You're the only person who actually gave me any ideas. Thank you!

**Kit-Kat Punk-Lover:** Yeah, Tiffany's pretty awesome. I want to use her again sometime and I just made her up on the spot. No joke. It's amazing how some ideas just run up and give you a creativity inducing concussion.

**Lunarobi Pride:** Yeah, I've drawn chibi before. Not my favorite style, but still adorable when it's done right. Chibi Ebony nibbling on a Twix bar sounds adorable!

**animegirlskipper:** Glad I could make you laugh. I love making people laugh even if I can't see them laughing. How does this story of L's past suit you?

**Mel1983:** Matrix L. Ha! Hilarious! I got that image in my head and as laughing so hard, which sucked because I had a migraine at the time. Oh well. Anyway, how do you like L's past? Good, yes? No?

**SomeOtherPerson:** I can never get where you're telling me to go. The name never shows up. What site is it?

Please tell me how I did with L's story.

-HaleyJo


	16. Rem

Author's Note: Ok, new chapter. Finally, right? I'm sorry I'm getting slower, but I've just started working with the ending and I want to make it just right so the story doesn't just go _thpft_!  


* * *

**16. REM**

"Ok," Ebony nodded, holding her cell phone to her ear in a perfect mimicry of her husband since his habits were the ones she was most accustomed to seeing on a daily basis, "So we should keep that under wraps for now?"

"_Yes, if you would,"_ Near replied, _"Commander Rester is returning as we speak, and I will soon be in Japan."_

"You're so weird," Ebony shook her head at how Near had had Anthony Rester return to New York so that Near wouldn't have to travel to Japan by himself. Even though Lawliet was back on the case, each of his successors was trying to investigate on their own so as to better impress their idol when one of them won the race to arresting Kira, "See you soon, then. Bye."

"_Goodbye,"_ And the line went dead. Ebony tucked her phone away, glancing over at Lawliet as he proceeded to stack those little white cups that held coffee cream at restaurants on the desk, seeming as inattentive as he always did.

After telling her his story, telling her how his legal father had brutally murdered his mother and sister, her heart had ached for him. She remembered how he had helped her find information on family annihilators for one of her college papers back when he had asked her to eat outside with him, and it made perfect sense that he would know everything about them and where to find reliable information on them. He had lived through such a horrendous experience, so it only seemed reasonable that he would have researched everything he could have on the subject, just to help him better understand what had happened to his loving sister.

His story sounded far worse than hers. At least she hadn't been stuck in some hole to be forgotten and left to rot for over two years.

"Coming soon?" He suddenly asked.

"No," Ebony dropped her chin to her hands, knowing Lawliet would see it for the contradictory nod that it was, "Too busy."

Lawliet nodded, his gaze sliding over to Light as he was just leaving the room to meet Takada again. He was still acting so damn innocent, and it was truly starting to bug him. He wished that they could speak to each other without all the pretenses just once. He wanted to talk to Kira, not Yagami Light. He wanted the satisfaction of Light admitting to at least him that he was right, even if he couldn't prove it to anyone else.

"I still can't believe you're alive, Ryuzaki!" Misa squealed for perhaps the seventh time already. She had come in that morning to see Light after having to deal with the fact that he was 'seeing' another woman and nearly fainted upon seeing Lawliet alive and well and hunched over in his chair like always. She grabbed Ebony's hand to yet again examine the simple but beautiful wedding ring around her white finger, "And married to Ebony-chan, no less! It's amazing! I'm so happy for you guys!"

Ebony couldn't keep back the slight smile from Misa's antics. Since it was very obvious that Misa had given up her ownership of the Death Note, along with her memories and Shinigami eyes, Ebony couldn't find it in her to be upset with her past actions. Her rude statement admittedly irked her a bit, implying that Lawliet marrying Ebony was as impossible as him abstaining from sweets for more than fifteen minutes, but she ignored it. She knew that Misa wasn't all that great with editing her words before they came out of her mouth.

"Yes, you have said that several times now, Amane-san," Lawliet replied, sticking his finger in his ear as though she had deafened it.

"How did you propose?" Misa then asked, catching everyone else's attention with the invasive question. Lawliet felt incredibly awkward and wasn't sure how to answer that question. He heard Ebony make her humming noise in her seat and knew he was sunk when his wife grinned wickedly at him after Misa turned and asked her the same question. She then giggled at the slightly pleading expression Lawliet gave her, both recalling how adorably nervous he had been as he 'popped the question'. She could not pass up an opportunity to embarrass him as he so often did her.

"He danced around the question as much as possible," Ebony giggled more, "He was so adorable! I could have died!"

"Oh! How cute!" Misa jumped up and down in her excitement. The task force tried to smother their laughter as Lawliet shifted uncomfortably, a nearly unnoticeable pink disrupting the pale complexion of his cheeks, "What was your wedding like?"

"The wedding…it was rather small. Just close friends," Ebony smiled as she recalled the sweet little wedding she and Lawliet had had at the Wammy's House on the first of December.

It was outside, the weather cool with thick clouds serving to dim the light just enough so no one had to squint, but bright enough to see clearly. She'd never seen Lawliet in a tuxedo before that day. Hell, she'd never seen him wearing anything other than his never ending white cotton shirts and worn blue jeans. The blackness of the suit, his hair, and his eyes made his pale skin stand out more than usual. In short, he'd looked incredibly handsome.

Ebony had originally thought that being the center of attention while walking down the short aisle in a pearly white wedding gown would make her extremely uncomfortable. But Lawliet's presence had washed away any anxieties she'd had before the start of her life-altering walk, especially since his appreciation and love for her had been so clearly portrayed in his face. She hadn't even felt uncomfortable kissing him in front of the entirety of Wammy's. It had been one of the best days of her life being able to call L Lawliet, the three greatest detectives in the world, her husband until Death came to tear them apart. Her past with the fighting hadn't made her uneasy with wearing white that day either like it normally would have.

"Oh, I wish I could have been there," Misa whined slightly, "I _love_ weddings."

"I figured," Ebony leaned back in her seat, grinning at finally being able to pay her husband back for all the times he'd embarrassed her.

'_Damage done, Ebony,'_ Lawliet thought sullenly, his mind instantly going over all the possible ways he could retaliate in the near future. He glanced over from hearing the door open, seeing Light returning to the headquarters, and glanced at the clock. It was nearly one in the morning, "What all did you and 'Kira' speak of, Yagami-kun?"

"As I told you all already," Light sighed exasperatedly, running his fingers through his hair, "Takada convinced Kira that I was a supporter, and that I was her boyfriend. We're safe for now."

Lawliet turned back to his coffee, staring at the dark liquid as he gently rotated his wrists to spin the coffee around in the mug, making it slightly climb up and down the porcelain walls. Before returning to the headquarters to announce his continued existence, he had been watching those channels that wished for Kira to use them to spread his 'teachings' after Demegawa was killed. He had been searching for possible candidates for Light's proxy, certain Light would have had to resort to such partial consideration instead of fully investigating who would take over his judgments. One individual had caught his eye in particular.

After looking up all the information he could find, Lawliet had learned that the dark haired, bespectacled man who had boldly implored Kira's orders was named Mikami Teru. He was borderline obsessive with his firmly fixated schedule and he practiced law as a very successful prosecutor. While looking through the eyes of Kira, Lawliet was certain that the likelihood of Light choosing this man to be his proxy was very high. Eighty-seven percent, at the least. He had already relayed that information to both Near and Mello, though Mello had been pretty pissed by the help.

"I'M GOING TO FUCKING _**KILL**_ _**HIM**_!!"

Everyone jumped violently at Ebony's sudden outburst, and then again from the loud bang of her chair falling over from how fast she had jumped to her bare feet. Lawliet saw the anger and fear in her face and looked toward the monitors over the front entrance, wondering what in the world could have caused Ebony to lose control like that. Especially since she'd used such a vulgar term. She never 'dropped the F-bomb'…

'_Not if I kill him first, Ebony.'_

Standing at the entrance to the building was a tiny figure wearing a fluffy pink coat, the hood pulled up over its head. The little person was dancing back and forth between its Mary Jane clad feet, trying to fight off the cold with movement.

Ebony let out a long string of expletives – many of which Lawliet wasn't aware she even knew – and quickly ran from the room. Lawliet's astonishingly cavity-free teeth ground into the tip of his thumb as he stood, moving to stand by the door until his wife returned. His heart thudded behind his ribcage, pounding in his ears as he heard his wife's returning footsteps and a small voice from someone else.

"They all sleeping. No one awake to play with me."

Ebony entered the control room, leading the small figure by the hand. The little figure's arms soon reached upward toward Lawliet, who surprised everyone by immediately stooping down to lift the little person into his arms. Bringing it back up caused the pink hood to fall back, revealing a set of crimson and coral eyes peeking out from under a head of shaggy black hair.

"Hi, Daddy!"

"D…D-Daddy?" Matsuda nearly choked on his own saliva, his jaw coming unhinged from the rest of his skull. The rest of the task force was experiencing similar shock and mental trauma, their eyes wide and their mouths opening and closing several times in failing attempts to form coherent thoughts.

"Yes," Lawliet brought Rem with him back to his chair, sitting with one foot up on the chair and the other on the floor, much like his successor, Near. He helped her to remove her coat, revealing a jean jumper dress over a dark blue, long sleeved shirt and white tights. He then held a fingertip to Rem's lips, "No name, love."

"No name!" She repeated excitedly, bouncing slightly in his lap as she started messing with his hair, giggling when Lawliet had to blow upward to get the waylaid strands out of his eyes and keep them from tickling his nose.

"You…have a kid?" Misa's wide brown eyes blinked several times as she stared at the tiny girl playing with the young detective's hair, causing him to wince slightly when she tugged a bit too hard, "A….baby? A baby?"

"Yes," Ebony scratched the back of her head and felt her face turn a bit red for some reason she didn't really understand. What was embarrassing about having a child? Tons of people did. Maybe it was embarrassing because it very clearly stated that they had been…intimate?

"She is so _cute_!" Misa squealed and ran over, kneeling down to get a better look at the bouncing baby girl in Lawliet's lap, "Hello, little girl! What's your name?"

Rem stuck her hand under the blonde model's nose, waggling her stubby finger back and forth in reprimand, "Daddy say 'no name'. So no name!"

"Oh! Right," Misa nodded, feeling silly for forgetting so fast. Her grin was soon back, though, "You are so cute!"

Rem giggled and tugged at Lawliet's hair and her own hair, "I have Daddy hair! Mommy say so!"

"Yes you do!" Misa agreed wholeheartedly. No one would ever be able to mistaken them as anything but father and daughter, "And you have your mommy's pretty eyes!"

'_Pretty?'_ Ebony blinked at that while her daughter agreed and Matsuda also gravitated to the excited baby girl. Babies had that magnetic charm that almost no one could resist. He grinned widely when Rem lifted her arms for him to pick her up. Lawliet was clearly relieved, using the distraction to slip out of the gathering people. Ebony giggled, earning a slightly confused look from her husband.

"If she gets this many admirers now, imagine how it'll be when she's a teenager," Ebony laughed harder at the slightly horrified look that took over his face, "Boys'll be knocking down our door the second they hit puberty!"

Lawliet grunted slightly, not liking the idea. He was a genius, though. It would be simple enough for him to get away with a few dozen murders…

'_They have….a daughter,'_ Light looked over at Ebony, who was smiling with motherly pride as the task force crowded around her adorable baby. How could she have a daughter? He remembered her saying that she'd never started her cycle, and judging from the child's looks and taking in the average developmental rate of a fetus, the child would have had to have been conceived around L's supposed death. There was no way her body could have started functioning properly that quickly, could it? Especially given the fact that she'd been stricken over L's 'death'. Stress normally screwed with a woman's cycle and sometimes caused them to miss it completely.

'_What the hell _is _she?!'_

-oooOooo-

"I can't believe you have a kid! And she's just so _cute_!" Misa squealed. Ebony wondered if the 'repeat' button of her voice box was stuck. She must have said that ten times by now!

"I know. I couldn't believe it either when I found out," Ebony smiled warmly and placed her hands over her abdomen, recalling the feeling of her baby growing inside her. It had by far been the most amazing experience of all her twenty years put together.

"And you still have a killer figure," Misa looked her up and down, feeling somewhat jealous. Even though she knew she was beautiful too, she had to admit that Ebony had both a cute beauty and an elegant beauty, something she herself didn't, "You are so lucky."

"I didn't really get very big," Ebony admitted as she held her hands out not too far from her middle, "About this big. The doctors were a bit worried about her development, but she came out perfectly healthy. A bit small, but perfect."

"That figures. Both you and Ryuzaki are so skinny," Misa said as she shuffled through the fabric.

Adamant to get some much needed 'girl time', Misa had hounded Ebony for about two and a half hours before the Shinigami woman finally caved, and the blonde model had ended up dragging her to a fancy, rather expensive clothing store. It was the type of store Ebony would have simply glanced into in the past while walking along the streets she lived on, knowing she would never have the opportunity to own something so nice.

"Ooh! How about this?" Misa held up a red two-piece swimsuit for Ebony to inspect. It surprisingly wasn't as tiny as other swimsuits she'd seen her posing in on the covers of fashion magazines.

"That's cute," Ebony nodded in approval, "Don't you have, like, ten suits already, though?"

"I meant for you, silly!" Misa giggled, "It matches your pupils perfectly."

"I-I don't know if I'd be able to wear one of these," Ebony hated herself for that stutter, but was determined to regain her composure in the face of this embarrassment she always seemed to suffer at the hands of the blonde model. She nervously flicked her dime earring back and forth, "I'd feel too exposed."

"But you've got the perfect figure for a bikini! There's nothing to be ashamed of."

"Shame has nothing to do with it, Misa," Ebony shifted her feet slightly, "I just don't like people I don't know looking at me like that. I prefer my modesty."

"I just don't get that," Misa huffed, tossing the swimsuit into the cart she had regardless of Ebony's reluctance, "You hang around just your baby and Ryuzaki most of the time anyway, right? It's not like it's anything he hasn't already seen – Ooh! That reminds me," Misa grinned wickedly at her pale friend and Ebony realized just a heartbeat too late what she was about to ask, "Is he any good in bed?"

Ebony felt her temperature shoot up a couple dozen degrees, "Misa!"

Several people turned to stare, startled and confused by the high pitched reaction. Ebony's face reddened further as Misa laughed at her and wondered if this was how Mello's burns had felt after that explosion.

"Come on, Ebony-chan! It's just a simple question," Misa teased, "I wanna know if that weirdo is good at something else besides thinking and drinking coffee."

Ebony groaned and rubbed her forehead, thinking frantically for any way out of the invasive inquiry. How the hell did she go directly from the world of don't-ask-don't-tell to the world of any-question-goes? It wasn't fair!

"That's kind of personal, Misa," Ebony mumbled, rapidly twisting a random curl around her finger.

"Your face is completely red. That means he's either really good or really bad," Misa smirked, far more knowledgeable about such girly stuff than Ebony was, "So which is it?"

Ebony bit her lip, refusing to say anything while at the same time wanting to defend her lover. Stuck between the devil and the deep blue sea.

"Just nod or shake your head," Misa huffed, determined to get her answer, "Is Ryuzaki good in bed?"

In what could only be described as excruciatingly, horrifically painful honesty, Ebony bowed her head in the closest she could get to a nod. Misa squealed and slung her arms around Ebony's neck, hopping up and down in her excitement.

"So Ryuzaki _can_ do something right!" She giggled like a schoolgirl and suddenly grabbed Ebony's arm, dragging her to a different section of the store, "We need to find you some things that'll be a definite turn-on even for that lifeless weirdo."

"I-I don't think I could do that either," Ebony stammered as she realized that Misa was dragging her toward the lingerie section of the woman's clothing department. Even though that was the automatic response that came from her mouth, the idea of getting some lingerie to use with Lawliet was rather intriguing. Her sudden desire made her face turn a deeper shade of red.

'_Good god! When the hell did I become such a pervert?! I blame Lawliet!'

* * *

_**Alexadritee:** Yeah, that chapter does make you just wanna give L a big hug, doesn't it? I'm glad you liked it, though. This one good too?

**HahynGirl:** I'd say I'm sorry for nearly making you cry, but I'm not. It means I succeeded with that chapter. I hope this one makes you laugh!

**majestyvampire55:** Ooh! Haven't seen your name before. I'm glad you like my story and L's background story.

**Kit-Kat Punk-lover:** I know, L's parents were pricks and Billie's death was so sad. I was actually a bit irritated with myself for killing her, but it had to be done. (sigh) What I do in the name of good writing...

**ActionFry:** Your name makes me smile every time I see it. Anywho, I thought this would fit in the bells nicely in a way that wouldn't make him sound completely insane. I'm glad it worked.

**Timekeeper101:** Interesting idea. Hmm... I left you speechless? Cool! Haven't done that before in m writing. That was really the best interpretation of L's past you've ever read? I think I'm blushing...

**Fizzwizzler:** I hope your friend enjoys reading the whole story. Tell them I'm glad they actually want to take the time to read it.

**warning746:** Yeah, I like explaining all the little quirks and details. Gives the story life. I'm glad you liked it even though it was sad.

**MythCreatorWriter:** "Creepily cute". I like that! Yeah, this explains why L's so weird even though he was pretty weird at birth. But that's L for you and why we all love him!

**Mel1983:** I'm glad you liked it so much. I'm glad my intentions with Abegayle worked well. I wanted her to be likable in the beginning and then hated by the end. Kendall pushing L out his window actually just popped into my head by accident, though most of my ideas do. Again, I'm glad you liked it so much. How does this one compare?

**Madeline Cullen:** Yeah, fits the reclusiveness really well. So happy you liked it!

**xlostinmyownworldx:** I'll try to fit in the others a bit more, it's just hard to find the space. Oh, and Halle liking Mello was just a joke. Remember, Ebony likes screwing with people just as much as L does.

**RyokoUri:** Yes, baby L would be majorly cute. Big grey eyes and all!

**SomeOtherPerson:** I thought this would explain his hunch really well. Coming from just bending over computer screens was too mainstream.

**Lunarobi Pride:** Actually, having Billie die just before her birthday was an accident. I came up with the timeline a long time ago and while I was looking it over for the chapter, I realized only then what I'd done. Then I was all "Yay! More tragedy!" Not that I wanted L to suffer, but you know what I mean...right?

**The.Myth.Of.Normality:** Yeah, sometimes I read too fast and skip over stuff like that too. Do you like this chapter as much as the other one?

I hope this one makes you all laugh instead of cry. Review for me, please!

-HaleyJo


	17. Takada

Author's Note: Sorry that it's been a while. I've been having some creativity blockage and I was going nuts with Halloween. L's birthday! All hail Halloween for its awesomeness and L's awesomeness!

* * *

**17. TAKADA**

Tech rapidly stacked cards into a tower, knocking them down once finished only to start again. She went through a cycle of different stacks and matchings and anything else she could think of to occupy her ever-restless hands. Her jaw was actually starting to cramp from her rapid chewing of the pink gum in her mouth. Her jaw had been in constant motion for the last two hours or so. Probably more.

She could hear Ebony's voice through the cell phone as she yelled at Matt. Her and Mello as well since she knew she was being loud enough to be heard. Tech swore that she'd never heard the girl as mad as she was now, but it made sense. Them all falling asleep at the same time had allowed the obviously crafty Rem to slip away from them to seek out her absent parents. She had to admit that she was impressed with how Rem had been able to find them since she'd never been shown the way to the building before. She'd had it pointed out to her before, yes, but never given a route to follow.

'_Well, she is L's kid,'_ Tech spit her gum out and popped in a new piece since the previous one had lost its flavor, _'She's probably just as brilliant as he is.'_

"I think I've gone deaf," Tech glanced over as Matt flopped down on the couch beside her. He pushed his goggles up to his forehead and rubbed his tired green eyes, "I've never heard that mini deity so mad!"

"Yeah, she usually keeps her temper pretty well, doesn't she?" Tech let Matt rest his head in her lap, "Unless L manages to piss her off. Then she gets mad at him."

"Ah, so it would seem, dear heart," Matt waggled a finger in her face, grinning widely, "I doubt any of us have ever seen that little hellion truly consumed by wrath, and I can only imagine that to be an awesome display of the earth being forced open by Hell's fire to give the Devil free reign to consume the mortal world."

Tech nearly shivered, unwilling to really think of it. Both she and her lover glanced over when the door opened, Mello striding in as he removed his helmet.

"You are so lucky you missed the lovely Ebony's phone call," Matt exclaimed to his best friend, somewhat irritated by this fact, "Tragically, I was not so fortunate, and now have suffered significant hearing loss."

Mello grunted unsympathetically as he tossed his helmet onto the other couch of the hotel room Tech had rented out for them. He then plopped down beside the hunk of polycarbonate plastic, kevlar fiber, and fabric, his bare arms resting across the back of the couch.

Ok, he knew who the X-Kira was and that he was communicating with Takada. So, what was he going to do about it? He still needed to be able to defeat Near and his idol so as to secure his place as the world's greatest detective's greatest successor. He was still pissed that L had told him about Mikami instead of letting him figure it out on his own, but in a brief moment of maturity, he had decided to just take what he could get regardless of the source or what is cost his pride.

Perhaps it was time to take drastic measures. Mello knew full well that even the strongest of people could be cracked wide open, heaving up words they would rather not say.

-oooOooo-

Lawliet shook his head at his wife's kindness and ability to forgive, something he personally still had some major issues with. Misa's face lit up like the ball that was soon to be dropped in New York to celebrate the new year when Ebony handed her a picture she'd been working on of the blonde model herself. It was an attempt to make her feel better since Light had been spending so much time with Takada, something the insecure girl had very obvious problems with.

Misa was especially upset at the moment since Takada had just invited her out to dinner. It was clearly a pissing match between the two women, seeing who was more worthy of being Light's lover. Ebony had suggested that she accompany her, just so make certain that things didn't get too out of hand. Surprisingly enough, Lawliet had agreed with her immediately. Ebony hoped that he was finally realizing and accepting that she wasn't nearly as fragile as she looked.

"It is a good idea," Lawliet had replied when she had asked him why he had agreed with her so easily, "Besides, you would have found a way to go with Amane-san regardless. Climb out through the ventilation system or something like that. Along with that, you are the best face reader I've come to know. Takada will be unable to hide her true intentions from you."

'_Thank you, Lawliet,'_ Ebony grinned as she allowed Misa to guide her to the fancy restaurant Takada was to meet them in. The thing she liked best about her marriage was that, while they were two parts to a whole, they were still free to act and speak as they chose whenever they saw fit. Bonded yet separated. A Yin and Yang kind of thing.

She giggled when she thought of how their coloring fit the symbol so perfectly.

"Good evening, Misa-san," Takada greeted them politely enough, but it was obviously a mere pretense. Her brown eyes cornered over to Ebony, who could see that she recognized her but couldn't quite remember where from, "Who's your friend?"

"This is Ebony-chan!" Misa answered before Ebony could, "She's kinda like that woman behind you. Like a bodyguard."

"Bodyguard?" Takada looked the small girl up and down, wondering how in the world she could be a bodyguard. Her brows lifted slightly in sudden remembrance, "Aren't you that girl who was dating that weird Ryuga man back in college?"

"I wasn't dating him. And please don't judge my capabilities by my looks," Ebony stated, her hands woven finely together over her belly. Her face was completely blank as well as her voice, techniques she used so she would fade into the background and come across as unapproachable. The combination worked wonderfully, "I used to be the champion of underground bare-knuckled fighting, Takada-san. I am more than capable of defending myself and Misa-san."

It was obvious that Takada didn't believe her, but she merely nodded and gestured for them to head inside. Social appearances clearly meant a lot to her, not at all surprising when you took in how she'd been a popular beauty since her college days at To-Oh. Such vanity.

"I'm sorry it had to be this late," Takada said as she unraveled her silverware and draped the cloth napkin across her lap to protect her rather expensive tan slacks, "But it had to be after I was done with news at nine."

"Don't worry about it! I'm a night person anyway," Misa said as she drank her wine rather quickly. Ebony very much wanted to rip the red substance away from her since the woman was not good at holding her liquor, but she couldn't cross the 'bodyguard' line here. She nearly cringed when Misa added more wine to her glass, "So what do you want?"

Takada seemed taken aback by the abrupt inquiry, "That's a hard question to answer….He seems busy these days," Takada said, referring to the man both women were after desperately, "Have you been able to see him?"

Ebony let out an unnoticeable sigh, growing quite bored with the passive-aggressive argument. Regardless, she kept herself very still, allowing herself to become a statue with open ears like she used to when forced into the decadence that came with the world she'd lived in during her late childhood and the majority of her adolescence. Her lips tightened just a bit when Misa tried to goad Takada by saying that she was going to announce her and Light's engagement at the New Year's celebrity singing show the other woman was hosting.

Ebony couldn't help but notice that Light hadn't gotten her an engagement ring. She wondered if Misa really hadn't noticed or was just in denial.

"Misa," Ebony grimaced at the scent of alcohol on the blonde woman's breath as she tried to stumble out of the restaurant about an hour and a half later, "Why do you always drink too much? You're going to kill yourself one of these days."

"But I won!" Misa slurred, "I definitely won!"

Ebony groaned, mentally complaining about having to support the very drunk woman. Her cell phone suddenly rang in her holster, forcing her to fumble for it with one hand and catching it just as the last ring finished.

"_Yes, yes?! What is it?"_

"…Are you well, love?" Lawliet asked, hearing what sounded like Misa rambling nonsense in the background.

"_I'm fine, but Misa is totally wasted,"_ Ebony grumbled, causing Lawliet to grin just a bit, _"This sucks!"_

"I see," Lawliet got one of his goofy grins on his face, unable to help it. She just sounded so cute when she was angry, which was why he would deliberately irritate her just to watch her puff herself up to try to look intimidating. Her cheeks would flush an appealing shade of rose and her eyes always sparked with the determination to see things go her way, "You are returning soon, I trust?"

"_Just as soon as I restrain Misa in her apartment so she won't wander out and hurt herself,"_ Ebony replied, swearing when they apparently stumbled over the pavement if his hearing was serving him right, _"I'll be there in twenty minutes. You owe me for this, by the way."_

"As I recall, this was your idea, love," Lawliet replied, "How did you come to the conclusion that I owe you for this suffering?"

"_You didn't tell me it was a bad idea,"_ Ebony stated simply, as though that should be obvious, _"Therefore, this is completely your fault."_

"Ah! Of course. Flawless logic as always," Lawliet then felt a slight tugging on his sleeve, looking down to see his little girl standing by his chair, "Excuse me, love. She wishes to speak with you."

"Hi, Mommy!" Rem yelled into the mouthpiece, holding the phone in both of her tiny hands, "Where you?"

"_Almost home, baby girl,"_ Lawliet smiled at the fact that he could make out his wife's voice from his place above Rem.

"This not home," Rem frowned, "This the Kira place."

Lawliet grinned slightly at the task force's reaction to Rem's words, each turning to stare incredulously at the sixteen month old girl.

"_I'm almost to Kira's place, then,"_ Ebony amended her statement, grinning at the phone, _"I promise to tuck you in tonight if you promise to be a good girl till I get back, ok?"_

"Yes! Yes!" Rem hopped up and down excitedly, her shiny black shoes clacking against the floor, "Be a good girl too, Mommy!"

"_I promise I will,"_ Ebony laughed at her statement, _"Goodbye. I love you."_

"Love you!" Rem returned the statement and snapped the phone shut more harshly than she should since she liked making that snapping sound. She then ran over to Aizawa, placing her hands on his knees and bouncing up and down, "Mommy coming back soon! Soon!"

Aizawa couldn't help but chuckle at the tiny girl. Having had a little girl of his own, he remembered how completely charming they could be. He lifted the little girl into his lap and allowed her to sit there and watch what he was doing, the eyes she'd inherited from her mother wide and full of curiosity, much like her mother's often were. Both apparently loved learning.

It was still such a weird thing for him to wrap his mind around, L having a child. If the proof wasn't currently fooling around with his keyboard, he never would have believed it on anyone's word alone. Ebony and L falling in love wasn't that hard to believe considering both were almost too strange to be real, but a child being produced from the union seemed to go above and beyond reality.

Even more surprising was that L seemed to make a good father. He always kept an ear open for his child's tiny voice, never once missing it when his little girl demanded his attention. He indulged her whenever she wanted him to play with her and fulfilled her needs whatever they may be. He had a very close bond with his child and often seemed to know when she needed something even before she asked. That might just be his creepy deductive skills at work, though.

Aizawa supposed that the most interesting thing was how L would occasionally develop a very small, loving smile when he looked at his daughter. After seeing almost no expression on his face in all the time he'd known the young man, it was such a drastic change that it still shocked him every time he saw it.

"Mommy!"

Rem suddenly jumped down from Aizawa's lap and stumbled to the door, nearly tripping over her little feet in her haste to see her mother. Ebony bent down and swept her daughter up into her arms, nuzzling their noses together as Rem burst into fits of laughter.

"Hey, baby girl!" Ebony spun in a circle, having to lean against the doorframe when she nearly lost her balance.

"She needs to be sleeping," Lawliet said as he stood and approached his wife, deliberately getting into a staring contest with his daughter. Needless to say, she lost when she burst into a fit of giggles, "However, she insisted upon staying up to see you in."

"Of course she did," Ebony shook her head, carrying her little girl in her arms as both left the control room, "You're coming too?"

"There is really nothing more we can do aside from waiting."

"Really?" Ebony lowered her voice since Rem was beginning to nod off against her shoulder, "What are you thinking?"

"You'll see," Lawliet replied simply, ignoring the slightly irritated look Ebony gave him.

"You seriously need to get over your trust issues," Ebony frowned as they set a sleeping Rem in the room she'd claimed. Lawliet had had Matt tell him how to completely sabotage the cameras and bugs in what was actually Ebony's floor during the first stretch of the investigation. They'd changed the office into a bedroom for Rem, "You know I can keep secrets better than anyone."

Lawliet frowned. That wasn't what he'd meant, but he should have known she would take it that way. Being trustworthy was something Ebony prided herself in, and it was the most frustrating thing she'd had to adjust to as far as he was concerned.

"I apologize if I've offended you," Lawliet reached out to entangle his fingers with hers, going through the motions of getting back into her good graces, "I assumed we were still teasing."

"You should know better than to make assumptions about me by now," Ebony sighed, irritated with her inability to stay truly mad at him, "You're the one who says I still surprise you."

"True," Lawliet nodded, "I will do my best to better pick when to tease you."

"Good," Ebony hesitated for a moment, glancing around the sitting room, "I've just been getting these bad feelings lately. I don't really know how to describe it but…I'm just worried, is all, and I don't really know what to make of it or whether or not to take it seriously."

'_Well, that's not good,'_ Lawliet kept his face from changing, not alerting his wife as to his inner turmoil, _'I've had the same feelings, which means something horrible is going to happen whether we will it or not.'_

-oooOooo-

Light stared down at the note Takada just slid to him over the coffee table. They had already just convinced the task force that Takada was going to help them arrest Kira. What more was there to say?

Takada- _I saw that girl again today at the studio. Ebony. She's been showing up there with Amane every day now. Why is that?_

Light frowned. He knew that Ebony was going to be following Misa around to keep her from doing anything stupid that could cause trouble for the investigation, but he hadn't suspected that it would bother Takada at all. He'd expected her to simply writer her off as one of Misa's friends and her bodyguard.

Light-_ She's just there to keep Amane on a leash. But you do need to be wary of her. She's not stupid like Amane. She's also dangerous._

Takada-_ Dangerous? She did say something about being involved in illegal fighting some years back. She was telling the truth?_

Light-_ Yes. I know it's hard to believe, but she was the champion of Japanese bare-knuckled fighting in the underworld just a few years ago. Even fighters from other countries knew of her and would come to challenge her. The 'Angel of Death' was what she was called then. She can still become very violent if she feels threatened or if someone she's close to is threatened. It's very unlikely that she would attack anyone, but you should be careful anyway._

Takada- _If she's so dangerous, why don't you kill her? She was a criminal._

Light- _I can't kill her. I don't know why, but she is somehow immune to the Death Note._

Takada nearly gasped out loud. Someone who was exempt from the righteous judgment of the Death Note?

Light- _That's another reason why you need to be careful with her. We can't simply kill her if she hears something she shouldn't have. Regardless, trying to kill her would throw suspicion on us immediately since we're the only ones who know of her past activities._

….Takada- _I see. But what should I do? It feels like she's watching me._

Light- _She probably is. Remember how I told you the original L is still alive? The person who used the name Ryuga Hideki in college?_ Takada nodded her head. She still had a hard time wrapping her mind around the fact that that uncouth, absent-minded, apparent slacker was the great detective L, _She's his wife now, and he uses her as his best game piece due to her immunity to the Death Note and her ability to take care of herself in almost any situation._

How ironic. She'd started the rumor that they were dating just to make their daily lives a little harder, and they end up actually getting married. But why would someone as admittedly beautiful as Ebony, obviously able to pick pretty much any man she wanted, go for that disturbing detective? He was clearly beneath her.

Takada- _Why don't you kill him now? If he's got so much influence against you, shouldn't he die?_

Light held in a sigh of frustration at the woman's inability to see the bigger picture-_ If I kill him now, everyone will know that I'm Kira. Only those involved in the investigation know that he lives. We're also the only ones who know L's face. If he dies, his successors will have the proof they need that I'm Kira. I also don't know his name. I could send his picture to T, but he's very careful about his photo being taken. It's impossible to safely kill him now._

Takada- _I understand. I'll be careful._

Light nodded. He knew that that was all he could ask of this lovesick woman. As good as her grades had been, she really wasn't all that smart when it came to real life. She trusted far too easily. All he had to do was paint her whatever picture she liked and she was forever wrapped around his finger. Unfortunately for him, L knew this as well. Judging by the fact that L hadn't been bugging him as much lately, L must be concocting a plan of his own in order to take him down.

Oh well. It didn't matter. He had beaten L once. He could do it again.

And there would be no miraculous returns this time.

He would make certain of it.

* * *

Author's Note: You like? I hope so.

**Madeline Cullen:** I couldn't resist putting in the shopping scene. It was too perfect. And I think L would make a good father since he's so much of a kid still himself.

**Alexandritee:** Yeah. Light would be awesome if he wasn't evil. L's still more awesome, though.

**Kit-Kat Punk-lover:** Yes. Misa is very nosy about that kind of stuff. Can't imagine her any other way, though. That's just part of her personality.

**Fizzwizzler:** Yep. Misa's too nosy for her own good. That's how she got mixed up with Light in the first place. If that hadn't happened, she might never have used her Death Note.

**nekosoulreaper:** Yeah, I'm planning on making little Rem interact with the other task force members more. And yes, she will confuse the hell out of poor Matsuda! How funny!

**ActionFry:** "kungu-ninja-Jesus wings"? What the hell does that mean?! And I do think L is a bit off his rocker. Hearing things that aren't there, bells for example, are a clear sign of insanity. He's just got that whole sane insanity thing going on. Like Johnny Depp. L LOOKS LIKE EDWARD SCISSORHANDS!

**Lunarobi Pride:** Thank you for forgiving me for Billie's fate. It made me sad too, but it had to be. But I'm glad Ebony and Misa's shopping trip made you laugh. It made me laugh too.

**Orohippus:** Oh yes. Ebony definitely gets pissed at Matt, Mello, and Tech for letting Rem get away. Who wouldn't be mad? I'd be hunting them down and confining them like Misa was no matter how much I love them!

**Timekeeper101:** I'm completely blushing right now. I'm glad you like my metaphors since I use them often. I'm glad I seem to have gotten Light down pretty well too. It's easier for me to work with funny insane characters rather than actually insane characters, so I was a bit worried. I'm glad this chapter was a good swing back from the last sad one. I felt we all needed a good laugh after that one.

**TheMythOfNormality:** Yay! I'm glad you can't choose. That means I did both really well. Boo-yaa!

**MythCreatorWriter:** Hello wizard person! Of course Ebony would be mad that Rem is there. She didn't want her exposed to Light in any way, shape, or form. Wouldn't you do the same thing? And I totally agree. L wouldn't be nearly as cool if he had some diagnosable mental disorder. He's way cooler if he's just weird as hell.

**xlostinmyownworldx:** A woman for Mello? Intriguing idea. I don't know if Halle and Mello would fit, though. She's nearly a decade older than him. I'll think about it, but I don't think it would work by this point in this story. If I'd done it earlier maybe, but not now. If you have any ideas, though, be sure to let me know.

**Magpie-chan:** I cried at L's death in the original story too, and I'd even known that it was coming. I still cried! I'm still trying to figure out my ending, but I've hit a wall. Also, what precisely is a Mary-Sue? I've heard it before, but I've never really understood it.

**Stains Of Blood:** You'll see what they got soon....(insert evil, mildly perverted smile here)

**BabyyxRain:** New reader! Yay! I'm glad I seem to be writing L right for you. Thank you so much!

**TobiSama-chan101:** Thank you so much. I like it when people point out what I'm doing right. It helps me to know what I need to keep doing to keep you all entertained.

Please review for me!

-HaleyJo

**EMERGENCY!!! EMERGENCY!!!!:** _I've hit a creativity wall with what to do with the ending! I need help! Please send me ideas! I need them desperately! I don't know what to do!!!! AAAAAAAHHH!!!!!!_


	18. Visit

Author's Note: Sorry about the later updates. I'm still pretty stuck on the ending. I hope you all like this chapter, though. It doesn't really go anywhere, but it's sweet.

* * *

**18. VISIT**

'_Where the hell are they?'_ Ebony growled in her head as she roamed the halls of NHN studios. Since Misa seemed to listen to Ebony more than anyone else – except for Light of course – it was decided that Ebony begin to tail the hyperactive girl to make certain she stayed out of trouble. That mainly meant that she was to ensure that Misa wouldn't cause any trouble for the investigation as she had done in the past no matter whose side she'd been on.

'_Good God, this place is harder to traverse than the warehouses,'_ Ebony's lip curled up over her teeth slightly as she picked up her pace, her hair swinging around her as her head turned from left to right over and over again in search of the correct room in which Misa and Mogi should be in, _'How the hell does anyone find their way around this damn place when all the damn doors look alike?!'_

When she turned the corner, she ironically and very unfortunately found herself facing Takada Kiyomi and her bodyguards. It was so irritating that she had to be around this woman again after having gotten away from her during college. Takada's I-am-mightier-than-thou attitude had always set her off even back then and being Kira's spokesperson _and_ his secret lover had only made it worse.

"Oh! Hello, Ebony," Takada smiled nicely enough, but her contempt for the pale girl was obvious in her dark eyes, "What are you doing here?"

"Looking for Misa-san and her manager," Ebony replied after forcing her jaw to unclench, "Could you tell me where her room is? I keep getting lost in here."

Takada looked her over as she gave her directions to her competition's room, seeing that she really hadn't changed one bit over the last two years. She still wore all black, never wore even the tiniest bit of makeup, and she still walked around barefoot even in the dead of winter. With her odd mannerisms and strange coloring, Takada thought that she belonged in a zoo of some sort for bizarre animals. Her detective husband belonged there right along with her, too.

"Thank you," Ebony said simply once Takada finished talking and started to walk past them. Takada nodded, brushing aside the feeling of someone watching her. If what Light said was true, then Ebony was merely here to rattle her nerves, nothing more. She would never confront her directly or come too close.

But there was just something so inherently disturbing about that girl that made the hair on the nape of her neck stand on end. It was similar to being cornered by a wild animal that could attack at any moment, but was still sane enough to want to toy with its prey. To want to watch them squirm in fear of not knowing exactly when they would attack…

…Only that they would.

Ebony watched Takada and her guard turn the corner, feeling a satisfied smirk titling her lips. Subtly scaring people had always been something of a hobby for her. Aftereffects from the fighting, surely.

Or maybe she just came out that way.

Probably.

"Hello!" Ebony rapped on Misa's door with the tip of her middle finger, hoping that Takada had given her the right directions instead of being a bitch and leading her somewhere else, "You guys need to hurry up! We need to go get a tree!"

The door swung open, revealing an excited Misa. Yep, Takada had given her the right directions. Kind of disappointing. This meant she couldn't hunt her down and scare the crap out of her for misleading her.

"A tree?!" Misa hopped up and down, "For the headquarters?!"

"Of course," Ebony grinned at the sight of tiny little Misa dragging someone as big and solid as Mogi out of the room, "What's Christmas without a tree? Besides, I'm not about to let my baby girl miss a Christmas just because Kira's there."

"Light isn't Kira, Ebony-chan," Misa stated firmly as they walked through the halls. Thankfully, she remembered to keep her voice low, "He's hunting Kira."

"What better cover than to lead the manhunt for yourself?" Ebony asked, staring Misa straight in the eyes, "I know that he's Kira, Misa-san. I _know_ it. I've known ever since he first picked up the Death Note since I've always been able to see Ryuk-kun," She then straightened up and faced forward, "I'm sorry, but you're just going to have to come to terms with this someday, and it would be better to do it sooner rather than later."

Misa bit her lip, for once realizing that it would be fruitless to argue. But Light just couldn't be Kira, not when he was working so hard to capture him. Kira went against everything he believed in, and he was basically responsible for his father's death. There was just no way Light could be Kira. It was completely impossible.

"So, where does one go to find a good tree around here?"

-oooOooo-

"You guys have seriously never had a tree in here? What fun is that? This may be a headquarters for hunting down a mass murderer, but you still have to pay attention to life too, right?"

"Well, yeah. Still, I don't get why _I_ had to help…"

Ebony rolled her eyes. Matsuda was still grumbling over having to be the one to help her lug the tall pine tree into the control room. Rem was bouncing all over the place, absolutely thrilled by the sight of the tree since this was only her second Christmas. It was for Ebony too since she had never celebrated the holiday while living in her father's decrepit hut in the slums or while living on the streets.

"Decrate!" Rem yelled as she tried to push a large box full of ornaments and lights and other Christmas things toward the tree. Ide had just stepped in to help push the tree upright and fit it into the little pot that would keep it watered, "Decrate!"

"The word is 'decorate', love," Lawliet reminded her from his chair by the desk.

"De_cor_ate!" Rem corrected herself, always eager to please her father, "De_cor_ate! You help too, Daddy."

A small smile twitched at the corner of his lips as he rose from his chair and helped Rem by nudging the box along with his foot. The decorating was actually a lot of fun. Everyone chipped in to help string the multi-colored lights on and to find the best places to hang the mismatched ornaments. With the help of Mogi's strong shoulders, Rem was able to pin the star on the very top of the tree, squealing with glee when it started blinking in all different colors. She also helped to hang up garland over the doorways and tape paper snowflakes all over the walls and doors. Sneaky little Misa had somehow managed to smuggle in a sprig of mistletoe and held it over Ebony and Lawliet. Ebony had been about to object, but Lawliet kissed her too swiftly for her to get out a word, the kiss lasting long enough for him to trace the seam of her mouth with the tip of his tongue. With a flushed face, Ebony ignored the catcalls from Matsuda and chased Misa around for about ten minutes before finally confiscating the plant.

Lawliet had always thought it incredibly ironic that it was a tradition for couples to kiss when beneath a parasitic shrub. Not at all romantic when you really thought about it.

Once the decorating was finally done and over with, Rem instantly dove under the tree and was determined to camp out under there overnight. When Matsuda told her that Santa Clause couldn't come to bring the presents if she was under the tree, her answer shocked everyone.

"There no Santa," Rem stated matter-of-factly, giving Matsuda a funny look like he was silly for having said something like that, "Santa myth."

"I always thought that the idea of tricking children into believing some big guy in a red suit comes down through the chimney to leave you presents sounded rather cruel," Ebony said when Matsuda turned to her for an explanation, "I just made her promise not to ruin it for anyone else if their parents decided to dupe them. The idea of lying to your kids like that just never sat well with me. Now," Ebony squatted down by the tree, "Matsuda-san is right that you can't hide out under there. Come on out."

Rem whined a bit more before finally crawling out and allowing her mother to sweep her up into her arms. Her whining continued for several more minutes before Ebony poked her in the nose to quiet her.

"Don't whine," Ebony said, "You look like a dog."

Rem pouted, crossing her arms and huffing indignantly while swinging her legs back and forth over her mother's arms. Since she was currently irritated with her mother, she asked to be passed over to her father, who refused. He said that that would only upset her mother more instead of getting her back into her good graces.

The ways Ebony and Lawliet interacted with their daughter were still somewhat baffling to those around them. They treated her like a mini adult rather than a girl not even two years old yet. But what was even weirder was that Rem seemed to completely understand them, despite her very young age.

'_She must have inherited L's genius,'_ That was the only conclusion Light could draw for a baby to be able to understand how Ebony and L often spoke to her, _'A child like that, still a clean slate and mostly too young to be able to remember later on…That could be very useful.'_

-oooOooo-

"Hi Grandpa!"

Rem skipped merrily to the headstone and hugged it tightly, her little arms barely able to encompass the front of it. She even kissed the name _Quillish Wammy_ that was engraved into the front of the stone before falling onto her butt to sit and talk.

Ebony smiled as she sat down as well, feeling his body heat as her husband crouched down beside her. They hadn't been able to visit Watari's grave since his funeral, and it was something Lawliet had needed for a long time now. She shifted her center of balance accordingly when he rested his head against her shoulder and draped her arm around his hunched shoulders. Even though he didn't say anything, she knew he appreciated the gesture. Her touch had always calmed him just as his always calmed her, something they'd first learned during Misa's first broadcast as Kira. The same night Ukita had died in front of Sakura TV trying to do his part to bring this madman to justice.

The cold wind blew around the small family, mixing hair of moonshine and moonshadow until the tendrils were curled together lovingly. Ebony nuzzled his hair, enjoying his scent and how his wild hair tickled her cheek.

Lawliet felt a slight grin twitch at his lips as he listened to Rem talk to Watari, calling him her grandfather even though they'd never met. She told him all sorts of things of varying degrees of importance, from her favorite color to how she hoped the Kira man would be going to jail soon so that her daddy and his friends wouldn't have to hide anymore. She spoke of how Christmas was tomorrow and how excited she was to be spending it with her new friends Matsuda, Aizawa, Ide, Misa, Mogi, and Ryuk. She giggled from mentioning the Shinigami and told Watari about how he was always wanting red apples and how she'd stolen his Death Note from him the other day and ran around with it for several minutes before Daddy made her give it back. She pouted at that part since she'd been enjoying the game of keep-away.

"Tea?"

"Please. Thank you."

Ebony tugged a thermos full of hot tea from the bag she had and handed it to Lawliet. He took it gratefully and used it to warm his hands as well as his insides. He smiled gently when Ebony kissed his cheek before popping a lollipop into her mouth, watching their daughter with contented eyes.

Yes, he'd needed to come to see his surrogate father again. It had hurt not being able to come and see him due to the risk of X-Kira, but the chances of Mikami seeing him were nil. The man led too fixated a life to happen across him during his daily routine. They were planning on spending the whole day here, paying homage to the man who had inadvertently brought them together by taking Lawliet away from that psychiatric hospital in England so many years ago.

Determined to make this a happy visit, Ebony dragged Lawliet to his feet and coaxed them all into a game of hide-and-seek. Ebony and Rem hid first, Lawliet finding them easily due to his sometimes infuriating deductive skills. Ebony found Rem rather easily when it was her turn, but she had had to keep looking for Lawliet for twenty minutes before she realized that she couldn't find him because he kept changing hiding spots in order to remain hidden from her. She'd thrown a fit, of course, but Lawliet had stated simply that she had never said that he had to stay in his hiding spot once he'd picked it out. She'd only said that they couldn't leave the cemetery.

As much as she'd wanted to, Ebony couldn't really argue with him on that one.

Rem had attached herself to her father's leg once she'd found him after finding her mother, squealing in glee when he kept walking even with her arms around his leg. Ebony had carefully tackled them both, sending the family of three tumbling down a short hill in a giggling, rolling mess.

They lay in a gleeful heap of tangled limbs and hair once they reached the base of the hill. Ebony and Rem were laughing out loud while Lawliet chuckled as loudly as his passive nature would allow. Pure white snow coated their winter clothing and their normally pale cheeks were brushed healthy pinks with cold and mirth. Lawliet jumped and held in laughter when Rem suddenly squirmed her way up under his coat, popping her head out of the collar to grin at him. Ebony was nearly crying she was laughing so hard at the adorable scene. Her mind was also scheming devilishly since Rem had just inadvertently shown her that her Lawliet was…

…ticklish.

"Don't even think about it," Lawliet warned after practically seeing the evil little devil's horns popping out of her skull.

"Think about what, love?" Ebony asked innocently, nuzzling his cheek while Rem reached up from her cozy place in his coat to play with his hair. Lawliet sighed and ignored that question, simply enjoying the contact from his wife and daughter.

A few other people were in the cemetery as well, visiting loved ones long gone on Christmas Eve so as to have time for their loved ones who still lived on Christmas day. They eyed the odd family a little uncomfortably before they realized that they were visiting a loved one too and merely trying to make the visit a happy one instead of quiet and sad. They smiled warmly at them then, feeling respect for them to be able to think in such ways.

-oooOooo-

"Where _were_ you guys?" Misa demanded once they walked back into headquarters long after the sun had gone down. Rem was still curled up in the front of Lawliet's coat, only now she was fast asleep in her cozy little nest, "We've been trying to reach you all day!"

"We were visiting Watari," Ebony replied softly, which instantly wiped the irritated scowl from Misa's face and replaced it with one of solemn understanding, "I think he's laughing his butt off up there right about now."

"What did you do?" Matsuda asked, wondering what in the world they could have done at a cemetery that would be in the least bit humorous.

"Ebony and our daughter seemed to find great amusement in tackling me," Lawliet replied, shaking snow out of his hair as though to prove it. Matsuda started laughing before being silenced by a stern look from Ebony, who pointed at her sleeping daughter.

"Shut your trap, Matsuda!" She hissed sternly.

"Sorry," Matsuda held up his hands in defense, not wanting to invoke the small woman's wrath. He only lowered his hands when she and Lawliet left to put their daughter to bed, "She's scary when she's angry."

No one agreed with him, but no one disagreed with him either.

"Thank you," Lawliet gently kissed Ebony's cheek once they had Rem bundled up in her blankets, sleeping peacefully.

"You're welcome," Ebony lowered herself onto the couch in the sitting room of her floor, letting Lawliet rest his head in her lap, "You needed it. I did too. I've wanted to go visit him since I met Misa there. I'm glad Rem could come too. She's been begging to see him for quite a while now."

"Yes," Lawliet tugged one of her small hands to his hair – slightly damp from the melted snow – and she instantly fulfilled his desire for her to stroke his dark locks. The gesture was especially calming to him since it reminded him of his sister whenever she would try to help him sleep at night. He'd never slept well, not even in infancy.

He refused to think about the possibility of ever losing this comfort.

* * *

Author's Note: So did you like it? Yes? No? Tell me what you think.

**Alexandritee:** Yeah, Takada's a bitch. People like her really grate on my nerves.

**Madeline Cullen:** Not sure what the deal with all that is yet. Like I said, I'm still stumped on the ending.

**nekosoulreaper:** Checking in on Near's team. Yeah, I should do that, shouldn't I? It's just kind of hard when the main story revolves around Ebony and Lawliet.

**Kit-Kat Punk-lover:** Teasing is always fun! That's what Ebony and Lawliet do most of the time to see if they can get under each other's skin. It's a game.

**warning746:** What does 'zomofg' mean? I'm not good with internet lingo. Your idea is good, but I don't think it would be very climactic. More ideas are more than welcome, though.

**TheMythOfNormality:** I'm not ending the story soon. I'm several chapters ahead of you all. I'm just still a bit stuck.

**Timekeeper101:** Yeah, I know not much happened in this chapter either, but I wanted it to be sweet.

**BabyyxRain:** Light doesn't consider women a threat. In fact, he doesn't consider anyone a threat except for L. Light's a prick that way.

**MythCreatorWriter:** Yeah, no Dragon fricken' Z stuff. Too cheesy and tiring. I'll do my best to make the story's ending not majorly fairytailish. That would suck.

**Lunarobi Pride: **Yes, Matt is adorable! You can't help but love those Wammy's kids!

**Magpie-chan:** Thank you for the explanation and ideas. They've really given me a boost. Still need more, though...

**Fizzwizzler:** Kids aren't really my cup of tea either. I love them, but I keep treating them like adults around their parents. Parents don't like that...

**xlostinmyownworldx:** I don't think I could fit in a girl for Mello in this story. Maybe next time, though.

Thank you all for reviewing. Oh, and more ideas are completely welcome.

-HaleyJo


	19. Christmas

Author's Note: I'm getting some creativity boost! I'm actually getting somewhere! Thanks to all who cared to answer my pleas for ideas. You all rock!

* * *

**19. CHRISTMAS**

Christmas was a blast.

While Aizawa and Light were understandably absent to be with their families, everyone else enjoyed the holiday to its fullest, especially little Rem. She went absolutely nuts, bouncing off the walls for the majority of the day. Both she and Misa were the most excited, though Matsuda and Ebony came pretty close as well. It was easy to say that Lawliet was the least animated, at least until his daughter would come up and drag him from his chair to play games with the rest of them, which was incredibly funny to watch. Ebony made certain to discreetly call Tech, Matt, and Mello to wish them a happy Christmas, two of whom thanked her for her call and again apologized about letting Rem get away with them.

After ending the call with a casual death threat, Ebony accompanied Mogi into the kitchen to help cook a huge Christmas dinner. 'Ginormous' was the word she'd used. Ebony pretty much stuck to the dessert-making, though, since that was her specialty after working in a bakery for several months after her first attempt at escaping the bare-knuckled fighting.

Back in the main room, Lawliet got some rather humorous entertainment by watching Matsuda pick on Ide for his complete lack of a love life and watching the man flounder in his attempts to understand love in real life. He was a bit caught off guard when they'd asked him about it, but he'd kept his composure as he always did and merely stated that romance was different for everyone.

No one could really argue with that.

"FOOD!!!!"

Heeding the call of the Shinigami woman, everyone spilled into the dining room they'd set up just for this purpose. There were candles hanging from the ceiling – hanging so that Rem couldn't mess with them – and Christmas music was playing softly in the background. Loud enough to be heard, but soft enough so as not to be annoying. The candles cast a gentle, homey glow across the room that was usually absent in the cold, hollow headquarters and the door was open so that they could see the Christmas tree from where they sat. The long dining table was an array of colors from all the different foods and dishes and glasses and all the different rich smells were to die for. Everyone dug in heartily, even Ryuk who was absolutely thrilled by the large pile of blood red apples Ebony had somehow gotten for him. Everyone exchanged mild dialogue that for once had nothing to do with the Kira case. It was like the outside world had just melted away for a time, allowing them just these hours of peace before they had to face it all again.

It reminded the orphaned detective of Christmases back at the Wammy's House.

Lawliet frowned, stuffing cake in his mouth as he watched as those around him seemed to be getting more and more drunk on more than just good spirits. He pressed his daughter's face against his shoulder, not wanting her to see such behavior. After having the father he'd had, being around intoxicated people – even if they were relatively tame – put him on edge.

Kendall would get terribly drunk quite often when he would come home from his shifts at the police station. He had been drunk the evening he'd pushed Lawliet out his window, giving him the injury that had forever crippled his vertebral column since neither of his parents could be bothered to take him to the hospital. Being the wonderful, caring big sister that she'd been, Billie had tried to take him to get help, but they'd been caught before they got even halfway down the block and made to come back home, if the cold structure could even have been called that.

"You suuuurre you won't have some, Ryuzakiii-kun?" Misa grinned at him, holding a glass of blood red wine in front of his face with a lopsided smile. Her cheeks were flushed and she hiccupped at the end of her sentence. The biggest clue as to the level of her intoxication was the fact that she'd attached –kun to his name. She never would have done that had she been sober.

"Quite certain, Amane-san," He replied as he pushed her away with his foot, still keeping a heedful grip on his daughter. He'd never tasted alcohol in his life and was determined to keep it that way. He hadn't even had any on his wedding day, not that he'd needed it. Ebony had taken care of his sobriety just as effectively that night.

"Misa, why don't you go sit over here?" Ebony came to redirect Misa to one of the couches where she promptly fell over, giggling as she went. When Ebony came back, shaking her head at Misa's continuous inability to pace herself with alcohol, she bent over slightly, "Is she sleeping?"

Lawliet glanced down, just now realizing the deep breathing of the little girl in his arms. Adjusting his grip slightly revealed that the little girl was, indeed, asleep. That or he'd smothered her. He was going for the latter, though.

"I'll take her to her room," Ebony gently gathered Rem from her husband's arms, rocking her slightly in order to ensure her continuing slumber. Lawliet did not hesitate to follow them, taking any excuse he could to get away from that room, "You alright?"

"Intoxicated people disturb me," Lawliet stated simply, grabbing a lock of her hair to wrap around his fingers.

"Mm. Me too," Ebony said as they tucked Rem in her bed, placing her new stuffed doll by her wild head of hair and tugging the heavy quilt up to her chin, "I handle it better than you do, though, since I'm used to being around majorly drunk people," Ebony's nose wrinkled in distaste as she recalled her old environment of drunken lechers and horny prostitutes and greedy pimps. It was no walk in the park.

Lawliet nodded in agreement. He wasn't going to deny that she was better than him in that department.

"Do you think they'll notice if we don't come back?" Ebony asked, playing with her dangly earring.

"Highly doubtful," Lawliet replied, tugging on her hand, "What would you like to do to occupy our free time?"

Ebony recognized that tone and grinned slightly. For someone who had never interacted with people for more than a minute and only a few times a year – if even that – before blackmailing her, he never passed up an opportunity to make love to her. Lawliet, as she had pleasantly discovered over the past two years, was a surprisingly sensual person.

"Dumb question," Ebony giggled as Lawliet ushered her inside their room, clearly losing his patience. She then whirled around and held a fingertip to his lips, "I just remembered something. Give me a few minutes, ok?"

"Very well," Lawliet went to sit on the bed, waiting as his wife entered the bathroom. What was it that she had forgotten and now remembered? He pulled his knees to his chest and cocked his head to the side slightly, hoping she would be back out soon. She seemed nervous and somewhat embarrassed, which only served to heighten his already piqued curiosity. His toes curled eagerly around the edge of the bed as he shifted around impatiently.

When the door finally opened, Lawliet's breath caught in his chest, and this time it wasn't because of a heart attack.

Ebony was standing nervously in the doorway to the bathroom wearing a set of lingerie the exact shade of her pale rose eyes. A push-up bra gave her the impression of actually having cleavage and a set of panties were low enough to expose the bone structure of her hips. A sheer pink material fell over it all from the top of the bra and the panties were only held on by thin ribbons tied into little bows. Delicate lace trimmed everything, giving the sheer material a bit of weight. The fingers of one of her hands drummed against the doorframe and she shifted her weight from foot to foot nervously. It was really the crimson blush across her cheekbones that sealed her fate for the night.

_'The innocence of her face combined with the sexiness of her body would drive a saint to sin,'_ Lawliet thought distractedly.

Ebony bit her lip nervously as he continued to stare at her, his thumb pressing to his lips for his teeth to worry the nail. He then stood and walked over to her, his dark eyes trailing up and down her scantily clad form. An excited grin soon curled his lips as he reached his hand out to brush his fingertips over her cheek, gently shooing a few strands of sugar hair back behind her shoulder since they were blocking his view.

"You look…stunning," Lawliet finally said, his hand moving to trail down between her breasts, "Why do you not go shopping with Amane more often?"

Ebony giggled, resting her forehead against the doorframe in embarrassment and delight. She allowed him to lead them to the bed where he sat and waited for her to straddle his lap and drape her arms over his shoulders.

"Misa is too pushy when shopping," She replied, feeling his heart rate increase when she pressed her body flush against his. His arms instantly snared around her waist to trap her against him so he could continue to enjoy the feel of her supple curves molding to his wiry frame. His fingers slipped up under the sheer material in search of the pale skin beneath, "That aside, this is a good Christmas present, yes?"

"Yes," Lawliet fell backwards, his arms around her bringing Ebony down on top of him, "Indeed it is."

-oooOooo-

Lawliet opened his eyes, slightly surprised that he'd fallen asleep for about an hour or so. He wasn't at all surprised, however, to find Ebony still out cold, his most recent love making skills having thoroughly exhausted her. He grinned and kissed her cheek, which still held a faint flush from their nighttime activities, and moved to sit up. Moving carefully so that he would not disrupt Ebony's sleep, Lawliet slid out from under the covers and pulled on his clothes, shielding his skin from the slightly chilled headquarters air. He leaned over slightly to adjust the bed covers over the Shinigami woman's naked body and then left the room, ensured that his love would not be disturbed by the colder environment outside the sheets. He checked in on his soundly sleeping daughter before taking the elevator down from their floor.

The only person who had seemed to beat him to the control room was Light, which didn't really surprise him. His dark eyes narrowed just a bit as he ventured to the kitchen, going about the very rare ritual of getting his own coffee since Ebony usually did that for him. Once he had hot coffee and a bowl full of sugar cubes, he returned to the control room, to curl up in his chair. The aftereffects of Christmas still littered the room.

"Hello, Kira," Lawliet said simply as though calling him Kira was an everyday occurrence.

"Hilarious, L," Light replied, knowing that the cameras in here were merely for observation, not recording, and that L more than likely wasn't bugged. If he were ever to defeat him, he would want it to be in a way that everyone could see it, a way that would completely and utterly humiliate him, "I hear you vanished again last night."

"Merely spending some intimate time with my wife," Lawliet dropped five sugar cubes into his coffee, lifting a small silver spoon to mix in the glittering granules. He then set the spoon down and turned to Light, wanting to vent some of the aggression that had been building up within him due to his passive mannerisms, "Tell me, Kira, how simple was it to send your own father to his death? That is admittedly something you can do that I cannot, so I'm rather curious."

Light's jaw tightened, well aware that L was just trying to push his buttons just as Ebony had when she'd asked him the same question before he revealed that he knew L's surname. It was just so infuriating how he could do just that so casually and so fucking _accurately_! That _fucking_ _bastard_!

"Do not toy with me, L," Light warned in a low, dark voice that belonged to Kira and Kira alone, "I'm more powerful than you think, and I will win this fight. Just you wait and see."

"Oh, I plan to," Lawliet nodded once, dropping another sugar cube into his coffee after sampling it and finding it not sweet enough for his liking, "We shall see who is better all in due time."

Who was better…That was all this was about anymore. That was all it had ever been about. It wasn't about the good of mankind, the pursuit of justice, vengeance for all those hurt and killed or any of those silly, more noble-sounding pretenses. This was all about ego, about finally proving who was on top. L's ego had taken a serious blow from being beaten by him once already, so now the stakes were even higher than before, especially since L's near death was now working toward his advantage in shielding him from being killed immediately. Ebony's presence didn't hurt his chances either since she could see things others couldn't and knew things others shouldn't.

Their tense conversation was cut off when Matsuda surprisingly stumbled into the room. If anyone was going to sleep the day away, it would have been him. He clearly had a bad hangover, though. His eyes were slightly bloodshot, his hands holding his head as he walked unsteadily into the kitchen, probably in search of painkillers. That was another aspect of alcohol that made Lawliet wonder why anyone would drink the stuff. Why would you put something in your body that would make you sick as a dog the next morning? There was no logic in it.

"Hey, Light. Hey Ryuzaki," Matsuda grinned at them when he made his way back. His grin was not so bright as usual due to the throbbing pain in his temples, but it didn't seem to dampen his spirits at all. At least he wasn't being as loud as usual, "How're your mother and Sayu, Light?"

"They're doing alright. Sayu's starting to get better," Light sighed. He was truly happy that his little sister was beginning to recover from her shock of being kidnapped by the American mafia under Mello's orders.

"Ah, yes. I apologize for that," Lawliet commented absently, looking up at the ceiling as he stirred his coffee, "Mello has always been rather easily excited. If it makes you feel any better, Ebony went there for the express purpose of lecturing him on the matter."

"Seriously?" Matsuda laughed at that, quickly silencing himself as the act hurt his head, "Guess that's not all that surprising. By the way," He grinned at Lawliet, "Where exactly did you and Ebony disappear off to last night?"

"I would think that fairly obvious," Lawliet stated, not one to be easily intimidated by such subjects, "However, I do not offer details on such private matters, so do not bother to ask."

* * *

Author's Note: I know this was another filler chapter, but filler chapters are just as important as the exciting ones since they lull you into a false sense of security. Hee!

**Alexandritee:** I like Matsuda too. I always get a bit irritated when Aizawa is mean to him. The only reason Ebony is pally with Misa is because she knows she has no memory of betraying her, so she decided to let it go since she couldn't torment her with it.

**Timekeeper101:** Don't worry. I haven't forgotten about Mello or Matt or Tech or Near. I mostly know what I'm doing.

**MythCreatorWriter:** I hope the ending isn't too predictable for you. I hope I can still surprise you.

**TheMythOfNormality:** Everyone loves how L is ticklish! I just thought it would be cute to make him ticklish and it fit for that chapter. I'm glad you're still enjoying this story.

**warning746:** Yeah, Light's a big enough bastard that he'd think of a way to use a two-year-old. He's just evil like that.

**Kit-Kat Punk-lover:** Yeah, I hated the whole Santa thing. When my parents told me and my brother he wasn't real, we actually tried to stay on the stairs to see him come down the chimney and prove them wrong. I was so upset. Same with the Easter Bunny.

**Mel1983:** I don't think that would work. It would make the ending too easy. I'm still open to any suggestions you have, though.

**Fizzwizzler:** Yeah, the fact that Watari couldn't meet Rem makes me sad. He'd be such an awesome grandpa.

**Lunarobi Pride:** Maybe I will make Rem steal Ryuk's apples. That would be pretty hilarious. No promises, though.

**animegirlskipper:** Why slap me?! I can't control what the characters do! It's not my fault Takada thinks Ebony and L belong in a zoo! Those are her thoughts, not mine! The characters are completely out of my control!

Thank you all so much for reviewing. I promise another big twist is coming soon.

-HaleyJo

(P.S. I have a question and no one will answer me. How does a lesbian lose her virginity with another woman?)


	20. Spar

Author's Note: More story! More story! Yay! Yay! Boo-yah! Yay! (ahem) Sorry. I just had soda. Anywho, enjoy and ignore the mildly-to-severely insane person behind the computer screen. Holy shit, I'm L!

* * *

**20. SPAR**

Matsuda handed Ebony a gossip magazine open to a page that had her photo in it. Unlike the last time her photo had been published in a widely bought magazine, Ebony didn't flip out and merely studied the photo with relative indifference. The little article beside her photo spoke of her as Misa's newest companion aside from her manager Mogi and how everyone was wondering who she was. Some speculated that she and Misa were having an affair of some sort while others thought they were merely good friends.

"'_The mysterious, beautifully ethereal shadow of Amane Misa still evades interviews'_," Matsuda read aloud from the page after Ebony handed it back to him, "_'What could she possibly have to conceal from the world to avoid every possible interview? What is this otherworldly beauty hiding?'_ Seems like you're hitting the press big time, Ebony-chan."

Ebony scoffed slightly at the completely overdramatic wording. Yeah, she was pretty, but not _that_ pretty. She knew that Lawliet disagreed with her on that completely, but she didn't much care.

"Stupid press," Ebony grumbled under her breath, rapping her knuckles rhythmically against her black hip holster, "Bloodsucking leeches from hell, is what they are."

"At least they are describing you accurately," Lawliet commented from her side. She whacked him lightly over the head and he pouted at her, all the same not taking back or amending his statement. She then excused herself to go check on Rem, who was sleeping in this fine winter morning. Lawliet spun around in his chair while the others worked, snatching a chocolate from a brightly colored box on the desk every time he passed it by.

"Still lost, Yagami-kun?" Lawliet asked the young man who had taken a seat on his other side, going back to some of his research, "Are you not yet ready to end this game?"

"You wish, Ryuzaki. However," Light sent the young detective a small smirk, making sure that their conversation was too quiet for any nearby ears to hear, "I have decided to up the ante a bit. It'll make things more interesting."

"Are you?" Lawliet cocked his head to the side slightly. That little smirk was setting off warning signals in his brain.

"Oh, yes," Light grinned and glanced over at the task force, "I'm not sure how they'll take it, though, when they learn that the greatest detective in the world married a Shinigami and, even better, impregnated said Shinigami to produce a little hybrid monster."

His eyes widened and his breath all but halted.

His long hands gripped his knees hard enough to make his white knuckles even whiter.

He couldn't move.

Damn it. He had yet again underestimated Yagami Light's deductive skills. He hadn't originally thought that the bronze haired man could have figured something like this out since it dealt with the supernatural, but even Light had the ability to truly open his mind to all possibilities on occasion. He should have suspected this, made preparations in case Light should discover Ebony's heritage. How foolish he was to again underestimate the other young genius! Damn it!

"What's the matter, Ryuzaki?" Light asked, relishing in the moment, "Cat got your tongue?"

"You have my attention, Kira," Lawliet growled back, also keeping his voice low enough so the others wouldn't hear.

"That's good, because it would be horrible if something were to happen to them, wouldn't it?" Light asked, his smirk widening slightly as his voice turned somewhat contemplative, "Your wife may be immune to the effects of the Death Note, but what about your little girl? I doubt you've ever tested it. And all it would take would be her photo and a few buttons followed by nothing more than a pen over paper."

Lawliet ground his teeth together, the sound actually audible to Light's nearby ears. The dark haired man was down to his last, thin thread holding back his impulses to kill Yagami Light with his bare hands at this very moment. He was threatening his child. His _only child_! His tiny girl. He could feel his shoulders shaking slightly as he fought to remain calm while his daughter's life was being threatened right to his face. The gall this man had!

"Not much has been happening recently, though," Light continued gleefully, "I might get too caught up in the investigation to remember to tell them about your family's dark little secret if things keep running this smoothly."

So as long as he was still winning, he wouldn't tell the task force what Ebony and Rem were…

"Hi, Daddy!" Rem ran into the control room that very moment still in her pink nightgown and fuzzy pink slippers on her tiny feet, Ebony following her soon after and smiling at her daughter's excitement to see the man who had sired her. Rem ran to her father and hopped up and down, holding her arms up so her father would hold her, "Up, please, Daddy! Up! Up!"

Lawliet didn't hesitate, lifting his little girl into his lap and holding her close, reminding himself that she was perfectly alive and healthy. He glared through his bangs at Light who was still smirking slightly at him, smugness etched into every facet of his expression. He bit back a snarl and held his daughter closer as though to shield her from the man at his side.

Ebony stood a little ways off, growing concerned with her husband's behavior. She could see Light's tiny smirk and her eyes narrowed, wondering what he could have possibly said to have upset Lawliet so badly. It was not an easy feat to pull off. She knelt by her husband's chair and placed her hand on his knee, squeezing gently. Lawliet understood the gesture and swept his fingertip across her cheek, calming her and promising to tell her later.

Light had probably never felt so smug in his entire life. He had finally figured out what Ebony was just last night. He had first figured out that Rem had taken care of her as a baby, which hadn't made any sense until he went over how she protected Misa so carefully. Her unique, very un-Shinigami-like maternal nature had spurred her to give her Death Note to a human woman in order to vicariously act as a mother through Ebony's birth mother. After Akiko died and Samuel ignored Ebony's existence, Rem had stepped in to be the baby's guardian. She must have altered her somehow in order to make her half Shinigami, make her more her child.

It had all finally made sense to him in that moment. Especially how Rem had gone to the trouble of raising L from the dead and taking the page with his name on it with her. She would have done absolutely anything to keep her daughter happy and ensure that Light couldn't just kill the source of her happiness again later on. It also explained Ebony's impossible, odd body chemistry. No menstruation, but still fully capable of bearing healthy children. And remembering Ryuk's comment on how Shinigami couldn't kill each other, he realized that it was her Shinigami blood that protected her from the Death Note.

He had wondered if L had known what his lover was, known that he had married the same kind of monster that had brought Light the Death Note, but his reactions now proved that he had known and married her anyway. He had still mated with that monster and helped to produce yet another one. It was amazing that neither of them were visibly deformed in any way. They could walk amongst humans and never be discovered.

If the Death Note worked on her, Light would eliminate Ebony right now for being the atrocity that she was.

"This feels quite a lot like déjà vu," Lawliet commented once he'd convinced Ebony to follow him up to their room in order to be safe from the cameras. Rem was currently playing with Misa and Matsuda in the control room, "But I should inform you that Yagami Light has become aware that you are not completely human."

"Wh…What?!" Ebony gasped, grasping the pentagram-cross dangling between her collar bones and twisting it in her hands, "But how?! How could he know?!"

"As much as it galls me to say it, Yagami Light is quite intelligent," Lawliet replied, sighing as he stuck his fidgety hands into his pockets, "I should have suspected that he could possibly figure out what you are, but I was careless. I ask your forgiveness for that."

"No," Ebony shook her head and approached him, wrapping her arms around his slumped frame, "You don't need to ask my forgiveness for something that isn't your fault. You keep telling _me_ that. Practice what you preach, you doof."

Lawliet smiled slightly and placed one hand lovingly on the back of her head, "Be that as it may, I still should have planned for this. But you don't need to worry right now. He can't kill you and killing Rem would set off alarms for everyone since Kira does not go after innocent children."

"You're still blaming yourself," Ebony frowned and reached up to kiss him, "Cut it out. So he knows what I am. So what? Like you said, we don't need to worry. I'm safe and Rem is safe due to her complete innocence. We just need to wait on Near's plan. It'll work just fine."

"…Yes," Lawliet nodded and kissed her, "We just need to wait."

"But what about the others?" Ebony asked, looking worried, "Matt, Tech, and Mello? They might still do something stupid."

Lawliet knew this. That was the biggest flaw in everyone's plans. No one knew exactly what they were up to, and no one liked that at all. Like Light, the raven haired detective was not fond of anomalies messing up his carefully constructed equations.

"Try not to worry too much right now," Lawliet brought his other hand from his pocket to rub it up and down her back, feeling the second set of shoulder blades that would look to be unnatural in the eyes of others, "Things will work out just fine. I'm sure of it."

"Ok," Ebony allowed herself to be held, trusting in her husband's word. Because of her position with her head under his chin, she couldn't see the conflict in his eyes from having to lie to her. The truth was, Lawliet really had no idea of what exactly was going to happen. He knew more or less the events that would come to pass, but how the whole thing was going to end was the mystery.

He had no idea who was going to win.

-oooOooo-

"I still don't think we should be kidnapping Takada," Tech crossed her arms, tapping her boot clad foot against the floor in irritation, "That could completely undermine L and Near's plans to pin Kira."

"I don't care," Mello said as he shrugged out of his leather riding jacket. He had just returned from scouting out the area around NHN studios in order to see the best methods of entry and escape by both car and motorcycle, "This'll definitely work."

Matt shook his head, able to think and use his GameBoy at the same time.

"I'd have thought you'd know not to argue with him by now, dear heart," Matt chuckled at her, crossing his legs that were propped up on the armrest of the couch, "It never works too well."

Tech scoffed, going back to fiddling with their cell phones. She was adjusting them and syncing them so that they would be like open walky-talkies, only more compact. They'd need to be able to hear each other at all times if they were going to pull this off.

"Habit," Tech sighed and sat down on Matt's stomach, making him grunt before laughing.

As much as she would have liked to drop the seriousness and laugh along with him, she knew that she needed to focus on how they were going to come out of this alive. She wasn't at all certain what the outcome of this would be, and that scared her far more than just about anything else. Undermining Near and L's plans was probably the biggest thing Mello was intending to accomplish with this little endeavor of his, and that was the biggest hole in the otherwise effective plan. His desire to be number one clouded his judgment. Why couldn't he just think a little more? If he did, then he probably _could_ surpass Near as L's successor.

"So me and Matt are to distract Takada's guards while you ride in and pretend to be a Kira worshiper-"

"An ever-so-helpful Kira worshipper," Matt chimed in.

"-intent on protecting Lady Takada," Tech went over the plan out loud, not fazed by Matt's interruption since that was rather common in their relationship, "Then you'll take her captive and drive off to that old church in Karuizawa and we'll meet up there."

"That's the plan," Matt sighed and switched off his GameBoy, weaving his fingers together behind his head, "Albeit a slightly daft plan, but a plan."

"Aren't all our plans a little 'daft'?" Tech asked, adjusting the headphones slung around her neck.

"Indeed they are, I believe," Matt reached up to trace the dragon tattoo on her back, "I think the term for us would be 'mad geniuses', dear heart."

Tech laughed, unable to deny that. It seemed like almost anyone who came out of the Wammy's House was a little off their rocker. She had wondered why that was for a while before concluding that most geniuses were a little off their rocker and that it was just coincidence that the Wammy's kids seemed crazy since they were all prodigies.

"Let's see what's on the telly," Matt reached for the remote on the coffee table and switched on the TV, coming to the station that would be broadcasting the 60th New Year's Music Show. They had decided to watch it since Takada would be the one hosting the show. It only made sense to monitor the person who they were planning to kidnap as often as possible so as to learn of any anomalies and other such things that could factor into the kidnapping process.

"Silly bobble head dolls," Tech rolled her honey eyes at the overly peppy celebrity females flouncing about on the screen. After spending so long in the mafia, Tech held no respect for weak girls who acted like they had less than half a brain, if even that. Much like Ebony did. They both found it incredibly annoying and a complete insult to the female species.

"_Now, there is something I must apologize to all the viewers for at this point. Unfortunately, is seems that Misa-Misa, aka Amane Misa, who was scheduled to start the show,"_ All three geniuses leaned toward the screen, _"has not yet arrived."_

"…Well, that's interesting," Matt commented, pushing his goggles up to his forehead as he sat up, causing Tech to slide from his stomach to his lap, "And here I thought Amane was all fired up about appearing in this show as her comeback. What a shame. She's an amusing little spitfire."

"And she would never pass up and opportunity to show up Takada by announcing her engagement to Yagami Light," Tech remarked, blowing a bubble of gum from between her full lips, "Don't forget that little detail."

"And what a juicy detail it is!" Matt grinned at her before turning his head, "What's this tell us now, Mello?"

"That Near is actually making a move," Mello responded, slightly caught off guard by this new development, "Unusual for him. He must be very confident in his plan to do something like this."

Back in the main headquarters for the investigation, Ebony was laughing so hard that she couldn't stand up. Even Lawliet seemed to crack a grin as Near openly taunted Light after unrepentantly admitting that he had 'taken the liberty of bringing Misa and Mogi into custody'. Each could perfectly envision the smug little grin Near was certain to be wearing.

To escape the noise, Rem had gone to the corner of the room and was either dancing or having a seizure. Lawliet assumed it was neither one since Rem had seen him and her mother spar before. She was attempting to learn and it looked like she was doing poorly but, when you considered her age, she was actually doing amazingly well.

"She has a good idea," Ebony hopped up and grabbed Lawliet's hand, "Come on! We haven't sparred in forever!"

"You guys spar?" Matsuda asked, sidetracked from the chaos Misa and Mogi's kidnapping had ensued.

"Sure," Ebony shrugged, "After fighting for so many years, I never quite got the urge out of my system. Besides, this time I can actually enjoy it since I'm not fighting for my life," She then had Rem sit back on the couch, "Keep her here, would you?"

"Sure thing," Matsuda nodded, taking a seat next to the little girl so she wouldn't have the chance to run off after her parents and possibly get in their way.

"Thanks. Now, come on," Ebony tugged on Lawliet's hand, "Didn't you tell me there was a place in this building big enough for us to spar in?"

Matsuda blinked for a moment before jumping from the couch and pulling up some of the monitors, following the odd couple until they made it to what seemed like a gym of some sorts two floors below them. Rem followed him since she'd heard her mother ask him to watch her while she and Daddy were gone. Besides, she liked this man better than the others. He was funny.

"Should we really be watching them?" Ide asked, feeling like they were being incredibly invasive.

"Oh, come on! You can't tell me you don't want to see them fight," Matsuda said as he brought up the screen, "Besides, Ryuzaki is always spying on everyone else."

"Well…" Ide couldn't think of anything to say since it was true. And watching those two spar sounded very intriguing.

In the gym on the bottom floor, Ebony began to shed her clothing layer by layer – she always wore layers since the building was so cold – until she was left in the same form-fitting outfit she'd worn during her confinement. Lawliet stood by waiting for her to finish, giving her lovely curves an appreciative glace as he did so. His eyes followed her carefully as she stuck a CD into a nearby music player, switching it on and cranking up the volume. Rhythmic African music soon filled the room, accompanied by singing and clapping as well.

"M'kay," Ebony braided her hair up and then lowered herself into a crouch that Lawliet mimicked, each clasping the hand of the other, "Good luck."

"You are the one who will need that luck," Lawliet replied as they shifted away from each other, "What you have in strength you lack in technique."

Ebony just stuck her tongue out at him before swinging her leg up at him.

"Wh….What are they doing?" Matsuda wondered, furrowing his brows at the screen, "They're not even hitting each other."

"It's called capoiera," Light replied as he too watched the screen, "It's a Brazilian martial art created by slaves brought over from Africa," Light gestured toward the dance-like movements, "The slaves disguised it as dancing rituals since their owners forbid them to learn how to fight, for obvious reasons. It's normally performed within a circle of people clapping and playing music while people will switch in and out of the fighting to combat different people."

Lawliet and Ebony continued to move, guessing that they had an audience but not caring one way or the other. They stayed relatively close to the floor for the first few moves before beginning to mirror each other for a moment, adding in the bits that looked like choreographed dancing. Then they began taking turns with wide, sweeping kicks over each other, spinning to gain momentum. Lawliet was the first to come completely off the floor as Ebony ducked to avoid his heel. They began to pick up speed, two-handed, one-handed, and even no-handed cartwheels propelling them across the floor. When sending a kick his way, Ebony ending up sitting astride Lawliet's shoulders, a problem easily rectified when he stood, causing her to flip off his back behind him.

Lawliet spun around before she could take advantage, his fist slamming against hers.

"Done?" He asked, panting just the slightest bit.

"Yep," She answered, and they soon were propelled away from each other again, dispensing with the formalities.

It was so strange watching their array of acrobatics. Maybe not Ebony since her slender form and confident walk gave her a look of refined agility, but certainly L. It was clear that the man held far more grace than his awkward gait allowed anyone else to see. This was especially clear when he back flipped without the aid of his long hands. Now _that_ was an impressive feat for anyone, much less the ungainly detective.

"Getting tired, Ryuzaki?" Ebony taunted him as she easily sidestepped him, sending a kick at his head that he ducked. It wasn't clear to the others when the fight had progressed to actually making physical contact, but it obviously had.

Lawliet sent her a confident smirk and swept her legs out from under her, pinning her before she could blink, "No. Are you?"

Ebony scowled and lifted her legs to twine them around his neck, forcing him backwards so that he could no longer keep her pinned so tightly. She didn't get far from him before he attempted to pin her again, bringing the entire fight to the floor as they grappled violently, each struggling for dominance. They seemed evenly matched despite their size differences.

Ide finally shut off the monitor, growing uncomfortable with watching them get so close. He knew it was strictly martial arts, but it still made him feel like he was being a peeping tom. Matsuda whined until Aizawa barked at him to stop goofing off and get back to work. Rem laughed and pointed at him, finding the fact that he was an adult and getting reprimanded hilarious.

"Ok, ok! You win! Now stop crushing me!"

Lawliet eased up the tiniest bit as Ebony finally admitted defeat after another ten or so minutes of rolling around on the red and black mats. He tugged on her long braid.

"I hardly think I was crushing you, love," He replied. He thought for a moment before deciding to make an inappropriate comment even if it got him whacked upside the head later, "You don't complain at other times."

Ebony growled and flipped them over – knowing she only succeeded because he let her – and sat up to cross her arms over her chest, "Get your mind out of the gutter for just a second, please. Is there anything we need to worry about with Misa gone?"

"If anything, we have less to worry about," Lawliet responded as he sat up, causing Ebony to slide from his stomach to his lap, and reached behind her to unravel her braid. He liked her hair better down. It glittered more like sugar that way, "Now she can no longer do anything stupid that could interfere with the investigation."

"True," Ebony leaned her head against his shoulder, wrapping her arms around his waist so her elbows rested on her knees that were gently pressed against his ribcage, "I'm still scared."

Lawliet didn't know what to say to reassure her, so he opted for saying nothing at all and simply embraced her. She seemed to appreciate the nonverbal support all the same and held on tighter.

"I'm worried for the others," She mumbled into his shoulder, warming that patch of skin through his shirt and showing a rare moment of weakness. Lawliet held her closer, knowing how hard it was for her to show such vulnerability, even to him.

"They will be fine," Lawliet told her, knowing it was a lie she needed to hear, that she knew it was a lie. She just nodded against his shoulder, taking comfort in the safe haven of his long arms.

* * *

Author's Note: So, Light knows Ebony is a Shinigami person. Obviously not completely accurate on how, but he doesn't have all the playing cards that L and Ebony do. And Misa is also gone now. Don't worry. She'll show up later. Annoying as she can be, you can't get rid of her. Like a cold...I'm not quite sure what to do with her yet...

**White Alchemist Taya:** New reviewer! I like your name. Very elegant. Makes me think of angels.

**Timekeeper101:** False senses of security. You gotta love 'em.

**Lunarobi Pride:** Yeah, Rem's a little smartie. And adorable. And endearing. Just like her daddy!

**Kit-Kat Punk-lover:** Yay! They make good parents. I think so too. This is kind of like my idealized version of parenthood and I hope I'll be a good parent one day if I become one.

**warning746:** What? I get the acronym, but 'lemons'? Do you mean that evil guys turn you on or something?

**Alexandritee:** Yeah, seeing Misa drunk is hilarious. She'd be classified as a babbling, bipolar drunk, I think. Can be happy or sad and rambles even more than usual.

**Sonar:** New reviewer! The idea of making Matsuda dress up as Santa never occurred to me, though it sounds like something he'd do. I think it'd be too annoying, though. Doesn't matter either way. Chapter's over.

**MythCreatorWriter:** I needed the tension to start easing back in. Christmas is over, so real life begins again. Yeah, L's the awesome guy, so immaturity is excusable since the result is bad guys in jail.

**Stains of Blood:** New review!...bad review...sorry.....

**animeskippergirl:** If L was real, you can bet I'd ask him.

**TheMythOfNormality:** Of course Rem can see Ryuk. She stole his Death Note and ran around with it, remember? From chapter 18?

Thank you to **jaz7**, **xlostinmyownworldx**,** Alexandritee**, **michi-nin**, **Madeline Cullen**, **Fizzwizzler**, **gaba kawa**, and **animeskippergirl** who tried to answer my very bizarre question. I apologize if it freaked anyone out. I was just curious. Please review anyway for me!

-HaleyJo

(P.S. I have created a DiviantArt account on which I will post images and things from my story. I have just posted an image of Ebony. If anyone would like to see her, go to my page and click the link. Don't worry, I'm a good artist! Your eyes won't be scarred. Promise!)


	21. I Have Confirmed It

Author's Note: This is being updated specially for **MythCreatorWriter** who has been having a bad day. I hope your Thanksgiving is better!

* * *

**21. I HAVE CONFIRMED IT**

'_Well, shit,'_ Ebony then frowned at herself, _'I need a new tagline.'_

She and Lawliet along with Matsuda and Aizawa looked over Light's shoulder at the message Takada had just texted to his phone. It said _'I want to see you'_, which could easily be translated to an illicit lover wishing to see her boyfriend, but Ebony felt it was something more. Why else would she have texted him such a normal message when she had never before contacted him over the phone? It was surely some kind of secret message. A code.

'_This means she's received the "confirmed" call from Mikami,'_ Light grinned subtly at the screen of his phone, _'This means that Near got to Mikami faster than I expected. Either that or L told him. And if that's so, Mello probably knows too. Everyone but those in this room knows that Mikami is my proxy. But it doesn't matter,'_ Light flipped his phone shut, fighting to keep his smirk hidden, _'My plan will never fail. I already knew what he had planned from the very beginning. I'm going to win!'_

"Well, this can't be good," Lawliet commented from his chair, "What do you think the message means, Yagami-kun?"

"Exactly what it says, Ryuzaki," Light replied irately, "You can pick and investigate all you want, but soon enough you'll realize that I'm not Kira."

Lawliet merely went back to his cake, acting as though the younger man had never spoken a word in reply to his query. Light knew perfectly well that he was toying with him merely in order to appease his boredom. He would be the one getting the last laugh, though. That was for certain.

In the days that followed Takada's ominously normal text message, Near contacted them and requested to meet with Light and the rest of the task force in order to end this struggle once and for all.

"_Yagami Light,"_ Near had stopped referring to him as 'L' as soon as he'd learned that the true L had revealed his survival to the task force. That was good, because calling this man 'L' – the man who he and Mello looked to as an idol, as someone they aspired to be – had always left a bitter taste on his tongue.

"What is it, Near?" Light asked just as Lawliet and Ebony entered the room. Matsuda made some suggestive comment about how she was wearing one of Lawliet's white shirts instead of her own primarily black clothing. Not to mention the slight pink dusted along her cheekbones and she wasn't even wearing her leggings. But both ignored him in the face of this new development.

"_I want to meet you,"_ Lawliet tilted his head slightly as he curled himself up in his chair, listening carefully to his successor's words, _"There is something I must show you pertaining to the Kira case."_

"But you think I'm Kira, don't you?" Light replied, his performance of innocence still irritatingly perfect, "Then you shouldn't want to show your face to me."

"_Well…I can't show you unless I show my face. Showing my face is what will reveal something to you,"_ Near began twisting a lock of hair around his index finger, _"And that will bring this case to a close."_

"Very well. I want you to realize that you are wrong," Light said calmly as he spoke to Near over the intercom.

"_There are several rules I must ask you to follow in order for us to meet,"_ Near replied, abandoning the lock of hair he was playing with in favor of his many finger puppets sculpted in the likeness of all those involved in the Kira case.

"Yes, go ahead. You're the one who suspects me of being Kira," Light said as he adjusted the headset on his ear, "So I'm sure you want to state the conditions under which we are to meet. We don't have any."

'_Of course you don't, Kira,'_ Lawliet mused from his chair, _'You have already set up your plan for Mikami to follow us to the meeting place and kill us all, knowing he won't kill you since he won't be able to see your lifespan, making you the 'God' he is worshipping. All you have to do is stand back and watch as the bodies hit the floor.'_

"_First of all, all investigators from both sides are to be there,"_ Near said, not wasting any time with any formalities.

"So everyone hunting down Kira is to be there," Lawliet mused aloud, "That way they are witnesses in case things turn violent, and we can ensure that nothing of the meeting slips out to the public."

"Not to mention that we all have a right to attend," Ebony chimed in, playing with her dime earring. She rubbed her forehead, feeling a little dizzy, "After watching so many people die for the sake of this case, we all deserve to see the ending."

"_Correct,"_ Near replied, rolling onto his side on the floor of the SPK headquarters, _"Mr. Aizawa will be able to tell you all that we really are the SPK. Mr. Mogi will also accompany us to the meeting after I release Amane so that she won't get in our way."_

"Near, to me, it really doesn't matter if the person who appears there is the real Near or not," Lawliet bit harshly into the cake sitting on the desk, wanting nothing more than to wring his neck as all these lies kept spilling from his deceitful lips. No, breaking his jaw with his foot would be better, "You've just been stressing that point because you believe I'm Kira, and that I won't appear unless I know that you're really going to come, isn't that so?"

"_I am attempting to think of a place where the people inside can't be seen from the outside,"_ Near continued as though Light hadn't spoken.

"I have an idea," Ebony leaned forward so her mouth was nearer to the mike. Lawliet stiffened slightly when the action brought her face far closer to Light's than he would have liked. He was lucky that he had such a passive nature to combat his possessive impulses, "How about the Yellow Box warehouses on Daikoku wharf? It's been pretty desolate ever since the underground fighting was raided back when I was a fighter there. Hardly anyone ever goes there and the windows are too high for anyone to see into from the outside or out from the inside."

"_That sounds good,"_ Near nodded his head, as he rolled into a sitting position on the floor of the SPK headquarters _"I will also request that any communication equipment you may have on your person are left behind. This will ensure that there will be no leaks and that no one can photograph my face."_

"Not a problem," Ebony sighed, letting her head fall onto L's shoulder. The idea of going back to that place wasn't at all appealing to her, but she knew she couldn't avoid it. It just kind of sucked that that horrible place kept dragging her back to it no matter how many times she tried to escape. She felt Lawliet grip her hand and smiled, knowing that he was trying to comfort her.

"Whatever Near's plan is," She whispered to him, keeping her voice low since Light and Near were still conversing and everyone else as too absorbed in the dialogue to pay them any attention, "Is it going to work?"

Lawliet didn't answer. He couldn't be completely sure, not with his instincts screaming at him that something was about to go seriously wrong. He wasn't sure what, though. All he knew was that it was. A feeling of dread was growing in his gut, the same feeling he'd had the night Billie told him that she wasn't coming with him to the tree house, instead telling him to wait for her and to listen for when the bells stopped.

The bells…

The bells had dimmed mostly during the two years he and Ebony had stayed away from the Kira case, focusing on raising their child together in the safety of their 'deaths'. He could barely hear them, only a faint ringing in the back of his mind. But over the past months since Ebony first confronted Misa in the cemetery, they had been growing louder again.

Much louder.

'_I may not live this time, Ebony. I may end up leaving you again soon,'_ Lawliet held his love's hand tighter, trying to draw some support from her strong soul, _'I may die at your feet again, and this time I won't be able to come back. If that happens…'_

Lawliet gently bumped his temple against Ebony's, a small sign of affection interwoven with his thoughts.

'…_I beg your forgiveness…Just please…please don't hate me…'_

"Daddy?" Rem placed her tiny hands on his bare toes that curled around the edge of his chair's cushion, wearing a pretty pink dress she'd gotten for Christmas. Like her parents, she had a keen eye for seeing other people's pain, "Daddy ok?"

"…Yes, love," Lawliet reached and placed his other hand on his daughter's head, gently stroking the shaggy hair she'd inherited from him when she was conceived back in the Imperial Hotel before they fled for England, "Everything will be fine."

Light glanced over at the small family as his conversation with Near drew to a close. He had to force back contemptuous laughter at L's faltering attempts to comfort his wife and child when he already knew how hopeless the situation was. He would never understand that. Why deny what you know is coming? Why deny the wrathful, divine judgment of God? It was stupid and degrading to do such things.

"I don't know what Near's going to show us, but I'm looking forward to it," Matsuda grinned as he absently tapped his fingers against his keyboard.

"Matsuda, you're too carefree," Ide remarked.

"What's bad about that?" Matsuda asked, "It's a good trait to have, isn't it?"

"Well, in your case, I guess so…"

"His case?" Ebony cocked her head slightly, raising a white brow at Ide, "What's his case, Ide-san?"

While Ide fumbled for an answer much to the Shinigami woman's amusement, Light reminded Aizawa that he was to help him to the hotel now.

"So now he's going to tell Takada to tell Mikami where to go?" Ebony tugged on a lock of Lawliet's dark hair, receiving a confirming nod. She bowed her head slightly, "The others….they've been too quiet lately, don't you think?"

"Yes. They are planning something they don't want us to know about," Lawliet replied softly, both keeping their conversation secret from the other two men in the room, "The only way to keep it secret is to not contact us at all."

Ebony nodded before bending forward slightly and pressing her hand to her forehead.

"God, I feel like shit today," She then clapped her hand over her mouth. Lawliet's wide eyes widened further in surprise and amusement, under which ran a slight concern. He was surprised and amused by her verbal slip up around their little girl, but he was also worried since she only slipped up like that when she was sick. Even though she hadn't said anything, he had known that she hadn't been feeling well lately.

Ebony then groaned and pushed herself to her feet to stagger to the restroom adjacent to the kitchen. Matsuda leaned back from his computer to watch her walk away until she rounded the corner in the kitchen.

"Is she ok?" He asked, glancing over at Lawliet. The act made his chair slip and send him tumbling to the floor in an embarrassed mess. Rem laughed at his expense, receiving no reprimand from her father since he too was rather amused by the man's lack of forethought.

"I certainly hope so," He replied, absently stroking his daughter's hair while she tapped on his bare toes like they were piano keys. He raised his thumb to his lips and worried the nail between his teeth, 87 percent sure that Ebony was throwing up at this moment. She'd looked a little green when she'd staggered off, "It would be quite discomforting if she were to fall ill now of all times."

Ebony sighed as she reentered the room, growing very irritated with herself. Why did she have to catch a bug _now_ of all times? It sucked! The sight she was confronted with, however, thoroughly distracted her from her nausea.

Rem was giggling like mad as Ryuk tried to shake her off his foot, clearly growing very irritated with the child. He was hopping on one foot and nearly losing his balance with every other hop.

"Ryuk-kun, be nice!" Ebony said to him, a very slight glare in her eye as she walked to sit next to her husband, "She just likes you. Get used to it."

"Little monster," Ryuk sighed and resorted to reaching down and grabbing the child by the back of her dress, somehow prying her off his ankle. She giggled as Ryuk held her up in his clawed hand, not at all scared by his toothy, red-eyed face like any other child would. She reached out and grabbed his hair, causing the Shinigami to yelp when she yanked on the dark blue spikes.

Ebony couldn't help but laugh at him as he yanked the tiny girl away from his head, holding her at an arm's length from him. This was just too funny!

"I need an apple," Ryuk grumbled as he dropped the kid on a couch, only furthering the tiny demon's mirth. Wasn't anyone scared of Shinigami anymore? Nothing he did could get this kid to leave him alone! It might be because she was sort of his kind, like Ebony. Anyone from her family would probably always feel comfortable around Shinigami since they were part of the same species.

"God, this is a hoot!" Ebony giggled and rested her forehead against Lawliet's shoulder, her gut beginning to hurt from trying not to laugh too loudly. Lawliet found the situation rather funny as well. It showed that Ryuk was not a sadistic killer, but just a creature that had no morals or sympathy for human life. He couldn't rightfully begrudge him for it since he wasn't human. Like Ebony had said before; Shinigami viewed humans as humans viewed animals, just a means to survive.

"Why do you humans have offspring?" Ryuk asked, jumping to squat on Matsuda's desk so that Rem couldn't reach him again. Ebony laughed at him for a moment before stopping.

"Hey, I'm going up to our floor for a moment," Ebony stood and bent to swiftly kiss Lawliet's cheek, "Be back soon. Promise!"

-oooOooo-

'…_Holy shit…Holy shit…Shit…Oh my god…'_

Ebony ran her fingers through her hair, her eyes wide as she stared at the pretty tiled floor under her bare feet without actually seeing it. Her fingers were drumming anxiously into her palms as she slid down the door onto her butt since her knees decided to buckle under her. She couldn't decide whether she wanted to start giggling like an idiot or start screaming her head off like a lunatic. Either one sounded pretty good to her at that moment. Maybe she could do both?

She jumped violently when a soft knocking vibrated the bathroom door she was leaning against. Even a tiny yelp had uncharacteristically escaped her lips, courtesy of her wound up nerves.

"Ebony?" Lawliet's soft voice somehow drifted through the wood. It was only thanks to three years of listening to him speak that gave her the ability to hear the worried undertone lacing his words, "Are you alright, love? It has been an hour since you left the control room. Ebony?"

"Fine!" She squeaked, knowing that she had done the exact opposite of reassuring him as she twisted the collar of her husband's white shirt in her hands, "I'm fine!"

"…Then would you mind opening the door so that I may confirm this for myself?" Lawliet asked conversationally. He had to wait a few moments before the door clicked open, the double click telling him that she had locked it. Now why would she have done that? Only he, Rem, and she ever came to their floor. Once she got used to a person, Ebony's modesty problem always dropped to a surprising nonexistent.

He walked inside to find Ebony perched on the edge of the tub, rocking slightly back and forth and biting down on her lower lip. The lip-biting was something he normally found enticing when not paired with her clearly distressed state. Pulling his mind from the gutter, Lawliet knelt in front of her and pressed his fingertips gently to the side of her porcelain face. Her cheeks were slightly flushed and he couldn't tell if it was from sickness or embarrassment or any other emotion that could cause a sudden pooling of blood under the skin of one's face.

"You are clearly not as fine as you claimed," Lawliet stated plainly as he began to stroke her face gently, bringing his other thumb to his lips. She was making him worry; now he was determined to get an explanation, "Tell me what's troubling you, if you wouldn't mind."

Ebony made her little humming noise, only it was a bit higher pitched than usual due to her keyed up state. Her eyes traveled everywhere, anywhere, but his own, something that was troubling him greatly. She always made a point of making direct eye contact with whoever she was speaking with. Her rocking was making him nervous, so he placed a hand on her knees to get her to stop.

"There's no way of not shocking you with this, so I'm just going to blurt it out," Ebony suddenly huffed once releasing her bottom lip from its torment, "I'm pregnant!"

Lawliet stared blankly at her for a moment, his thumb lowering from his mouth slightly. He actually blinked.

"…Come again?"

"You heard me the first time," Ebony still wouldn't look at him, but a tiny grin was doing its damnedest to force its way onto her face while her rocking resumed, "I'm pregnant again. Figures, since we didn't use a condom on Christmas."

Despite the utter and complete inconvenience of the timing, Lawliet found himself smiling as well. His gunmetal eyes lowered from her face, he tapped her knees, and she obeyed and dropped her feet to the floor so her legs were out of his line of vision. He gently prodded her stomach with one long finger, prompting a sudden giggle from the very ticklish young woman he was married to.

"Again…." Lawliet's smile grew to a grin as he rested his chin on her knees, staring at her small abdomen as though staring hard enough would enable him to see the growing fetus inside. He gently ran his hands up and down the lovely curves of her waist and hips, "Rem will be delighted."

Ebony grinned, that realization only just now hitting her. Rem wouldn't be delighted. She'd be ecstatic! She'd go absolutely nuts!

"So _this_ is what Ryuk-kun's been laughing about!" Ebony laughed in another sudden comprehension. She read the question in Lawliet's eyes, "He's been laughing at me since just a little after Christmas! He can see its lifespan! Ha!"

In a sudden burst of emotion too quick for her to see, Ebony suddenly found herself enveloped in her husband's arms, his face buried in her shoulder as he sweetly kissed her slender neck. Though a bit confused, she happily returned his embrace, lovingly stroking his hair.

Lawliet just couldn't believe it. After feeling so much fear for so long, so much worry and apprehension and unease that had been made worse by the threat on his daughter, a sudden light had been cast upon him in the promise of another child.

He really should have expected such things by now. Ebony brought light into his dark life far more often than she realized. She just had that natural way about her, to bring him happiness even when things seemed so hopeless.

"I reiterate my point," Lawliet lifted his face to kiss her cheek, "You are an amazing creature, love."

Ebony giggled in absolute glee, nuzzling her nose against his and enjoying the tickling sensation his wayward hair left on her brow.

"And you are a doof," She replied happily, bumping his sides gently with her knees and cradling his pale, unique face in her small hands like it was something precious and valuable.

To her, it was that and more.

"And that is why you love me," His reply was automatic as he wiggled his long fingers against her side, making Ebony jump and giggle in his arms.

"You're teasing me again."

"Of course," Lawliet tugged her to her feet and tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear, his most used excuse to touch her sugar locks, "If I'm defining your personality correctly, you enjoy it when I tease you."

"True," Ebony allowed herself to be led from the bathroom and down the hall. Lawliet's fingers played with hers, something they always did when his emotions were keyed up for good or bad. Definitely good right now, though.

"You are certain?" Lawliet asked, his eyes cornering over to her.

"Yep," Ebony grinned, thinking about the pregnancy test Misa had somehow slipped to her before being taken into custody. It was still sitting in the bathroom, showing a very clear positive on its little screen, "I have confirmed it."

"Good," Lawliet led her to Rem's bedroom, in which the girl could be heard talking to herself. Lawliet knocked with the tip of his middle finger, "Rem?"

Little feet could be heard pattering to the door, "Yes, Daddy?" She asked as she opened the door using the little stool inside since she wasn't tall enough to reach the handle.

"We have good news, but we have a question to ask you first," Lawliet let himself in, going to crouch on the edge of the little girl's bed and tugging his wife to sit beside him. Rem struggled onto the bed and wrapped her arms around her father's bent knee, "How would you feel about being a big sister?"

"Big sister? Rem would love it!" She giggled. Then her eyes shot open and she looked to Ebony, "Mommy?"

"Yes," Ebony nodded, placing her hands against her abdomen, "You're going to be a big sister soon, Rem."

Rem screeched and started jumping up and down on the bed, forcing Lawliet to place his hands behind him to keep his balance in his awkward seating position. She then crawled haphazardly over her father's knees – coming precariously close to hitting the danger zone – to sit on her mother's lap, "A baby brother or baby sister?"

* * *

Author's Note: So how was _that_ for a surprise? Another baby! Yay!

**Nekosoulreaper:** He could threaten Rem very easily, apparently. I'm glad you liked their spar, but please don't throw any shuriken or kunai at me, please. I'd never be able to finish the story and you would be left with the cliffhanger of the century. I think my other reviewers might hunt you down if that happened.

**Alexandritee:** I don't know if L could have a soft spot for Misa. Pity maybe, but that's about it. I doubt he would have much tolerance for her.

**xlostinmyownworldx:** I can't tell you! That would ruin the ending that I've been agonizing over for the past month and a half. Do you want me to ruin the ending that I've been agonizing over for the mast month and a half? If so, I will never type to you again! Never!

**MythCreatorWriter:** I am doing my best to not make the ending fairytailish. I promise! I'm really really really trying!

**Timekeeper101:** Yes, I want to punch Light in the face too. Little prick, bastard, man-whore, dickhead, (...goes on calling Light every explicative she's ever heard...).

**Kit-Kat Punk-lover:** Yay! Go after Light with your shoe! Make sure it's one of those impossible-to-walk-in stilettoes!

**Sonar:** Use fragment sentences. Really short. Check out your site. I'll try. Glad you like. Bye.

**TheMythOfNormality:** Sorry you don't like false senses of security, but I can't help but use them! They just work so well!

**Fizzwizzler:** Of course it's cute to watch a couple spar. If I dated, I would want a boyfriend I could spar with. That would be sweet!

**Lunarobi Pride:** I hadn't thought of it that way. It is kind of like the beginning when they always fought. Cool! Oh, and please don't glomp me. I have an issue with physical contact outside my immediate family. 'Cept for my dad. My dad can go fall off a cliff and die. Or die in drunk driving. That's probably more likely...

**animeskippergirl:** I like being included in stuff too. Don't think it makes you seem like a dork. Besides, most dorks grow up to rule the world. Embrace your dork-ness!

**Ice Among Fire:** Yeah, Light wouldn't be able to kill her with the Death Note, but he doesn't know that. Remember, many Shinigami don't even know all the rules. Remember how Light figured out many rules from experimentation. In short, the 780 rule is unknown. It applies, but they don't know it. Thanks for reminding me, though. I like it when people care enough to try to stop me from stepping off a cliff. You rock!

-HaleyJo

**_HAPPY THANKSGIVING EVERYONE!!!!_**


	22. Removing Pieces

Author's Note: Ok, here's chapter 22. Oh, and go and check my DeviantArt page. I have uploaded a picture of Tech!

* * *

**22. REMOVING PIECES**

Matt tapped his gloved finger against the steering wheel, his usual unending cheer absent for the first time in very many years as he smoothly directed the red car through the abhorrent Tokyo city traffic in only a half conscious manner. He'd been driving far too long to need to keep 100 percent focus on it. He'd been driving since before it was even legal for him to drive, which was the reason why he'd ended up at the Wammy's House in the first place.

He and a disloyal, manipulative friend of his – the same friend who'd gotten him hooked on cigarettes at twelve years old – had boosted a car for a joyride when he was about thirteen. At that same time his dad had been walking by a gang fight and, being a proud soldier of England, had tried to break it up and ended up taking a knife to the throat that killed him almost instantly. Matt had found out about this after he and his buddy had been arrested for the joyride, him getting off lightly because of his age and lack of a criminal record. The same could not be said for his friend, who'd had a rap sheet so long it could have encompassed the world two times over.

If he hadn't been joyriding, he would have been taking that summer walk with his dad and most likely gotten killed himself trying to protect his father. Since his mother had left him and his dad when he was about five years old, he'd ended up being placed with a couple of foster families, neither of which wanted him because of his smoking habit that had gotten worse after his dad was killed. He'd ended up at the Wammy's House a year or so after his dad's death, quickly making friends with Mello even though most kids had said to stay away from him due to his infamous reputation for violent temper tantrums.

Moving the memories out of his mind, memories he'd already come to terms with and put behind him years ago, Matt turned his worries to more current matters. He was worried not only for himself, but for his best friend, Mello, and the love of his life, Tech. What they were doing was really, really, _really_ risky, and each of the trio from Wammy's knew it. Yet here they were, doing it anyway, and all for the sake of proving who was on top.

When you stepped back and looked at it all objectively, all they were really proving was who was the most immature child on the planet.

Tech, noticing her love's fidgeting, reached over and covered his hand with hers and offered him a small smile. Matt grinned back to the best of his ability, gripping her hand in thanks.

"I suppose this is it," His smile softened slightly and he pushed his goggles up to his forehead to uncover his green eyes, which he closed as he leaned in to kiss her gently. Since Tech had deciphered the code of his daily speech patterns after years of patient and enjoyable study, she knew that he wasn't just talking about this being it, the time that they moved in to distract Takada's guards in order to kidnap her and get a one-up on Near and even L. No, no…

…He meant that this could be it….This could be the day they died…..

"I love you, Mail."

"I love you, Analah."

It was funny. Sometimes they forgot that they'd had other names before the Wammy's House. Their pasts always seemed like totally other lives when compared to their more peaceful, safer times in that special orphanage under the guiding, grandfatherly force of Quillish Wammy…

"It's been a wild ride," Matt lit his cigarette – perhaps his last – and grasped the steering wheel while grinning his flirty smile for her, which she returned with one of her own. She adjusted her grip on the heavy black object in her fingerless-gloved hands.

Matt's boot slammed on the gas pedal.

And it was on.

People ducked out of the way, screaming as they went, when the speedy red car occupied by two of Wammy's finest barreled into the parking lot of the NHN studios just as Takada was a quarter of the way down her precious little red carpet. It was clearly a foreign car since the driver's seat was on the left side. As it screeched to a stop, the window opened, revealing a redheaded youth wearing goggles and a clearly Hawaiian girl with ice blue-tipped black hair. Their only warning was the metallic glint before the young woman reached over the man and held out a gun, firing a smoke screen at Takada's guards and rendering their eyes momentarily useless.

"IT'S A REBEL!!"

"PROTECT LADY TAKADA!"

Halle held her left arm in front of her face, trying to keep the smoke from reaching her lungs and making her cough. Everything had instantly gone to chaos, the surrounding fans and worshippers of Takada running into an instinctively panicked frenzy while the highly trained bodyguards floundered for order. They had never anticipated that anyone would really be so bold and crazy as to directly attack Kira's spokesperson right out in full view of the public. They had gotten complacent and had thus been completely unprepared regardless of how well they'd been trained. Sporadic orders rang out around them but no one could hear them due to the screaming. Not to mention the sound of the car's screeching wheels as the redhead behind the wheel urged it to speed off to avoid arrest of both himself and the young woman riding shotgun.

"Are you ok, ma'am?" Halle addressed the dark haired woman in the white fur coat that she was pretending to protect when in reality she hated everything the woman stood for. After a shaky 'yes', Halle began to lead her toward the station's entrance, "Get inside NHN right away."

Suddenly, a black motorcycle screeched to a stop near them, just barely avoiding running them over. Takada jumped in fright, fearing that it was yet another rebel come to assassinate her.

"No, we've just been attacked. It's too dangerous for you to stay around or inside NHN," The slender man atop the bike said, his voice slightly muffled from his black helmet. His use of the word 'we' caused Takada to relax somewhat, "The best thing for the moment is to get away from this place. Please get behind me, ma'am. Hurry!"

'_Mello!'_ Halle thought things over during the two seconds of time she had and then ushered Takada to the bike, "It's ok. Please get onto the motorcycle and escape as fast as you can," Halle then whipped out her phone and continued to play her part as Mello raced off with Takada, "A-team, B-team, I want you to protect Lady Takada with your cars. The rest of you go after the car that just escaped!"

Everyone was horrifically shocked when Mello escaped the cars tailing him by turning down an alleyway too narrow for the bulky cars to follow, but perfect for his more compact motorcycle. The narrow alley also protected him from any bullets Takada's fanatical guards might want to shoot at him since the chance of hitting Takada was even greater than their chance of hitting him since she was seated behind him. He swiftly bound Takada to him by clamping a set of handcuffs to both their wrists, meaning she couldn't attempt to escape once he stopped. Not that she would have been able to escape anyway. She was not a particularly strong or fast woman.

Matt and Tech were in a race for their lives as well, blowing through Tokyo at breakneck speed and taking all sorts of random turns in an attempt to shake their pursuers and somehow avoiding any pedestrians. But Takada's guards were clearly better at driving than protecting and stayed right on their tail no matter how unexpectedly they would turn corners.

"Damn!" Matt growled at the sight of the vehicle blockade that suddenly appeared after a particularly risky turn, "The guards got ahead of us!"

"How many guards does Takada have?" Tech asked, quickly undoing her seat belt since it seemed there was no longer any need for it. It wasn't like they were going to be going anywhere any time soon.

"We'll have to use the smoke screen again," Matt said as he slammed on the breaks, bringing the speeding car to a sudden halt. The tires squealed in distress at their mistreatment against the cold road.

"You don't really believe that'll get us out of this mess, do you?" Tech asked even as she cocked the smoke gun yet again.

"Nope," Matt sighed, "But we may as well go out with a bang."

Tech giggled, "Indeed."

Together the two lovers stepped out of their red getaway car and calmly faced the Kira worshipers, each of which had a gun aimed at them. They laced their fingers together intimately and held on tight, drawing strength from each other as they accepted their mournful fate…

-oooOooo-

Lawliet bit his thumbnail incessantly, unable to regain his equilibrium until this whole thing with Takada's kidnapping was over. He knew that Mello wanted to beat Near no matter what the cost, but rash actions such as these were exactly why he was second to Near in becoming his successor, in taking over the L name when he either retired or died, whichever came first. However, Near wasn't the best candidate either. He never took any forward actions when it came to solving a case, and some cases needed action on the detective's part in order to be solved. Neither of them alone was really truly fit for his title, and he had to admit that the fact that they hadn't figured that out yet was disheartening. If only they could work together without blood being spilled, then they could rightfully stand with him on the pedestal 'L' was placed on. They could earn that honor if they would just put their differences aside.

_Beep-beep-beep!_

Lawliet glanced over Light's shoulder, seeing his phone reading 'Restricted Number'.

'_Takada Kiyomi,'_ Lawliet knew at once that it was her. The time it had taken her to contact Light was what was worrying him.

"Takada!" Light then turned to the others, "Everybody keep you voices down," Light frowned at how Lawliet so obviously leaned closer in order to eavesdrop, but forced himself to turn back around and ignore it. Objecting would be suspicious, "Takada, are you ok?!"

Takada whispered something about a guard being nearby and that she was sneaking in this call in order to be found. Lawliet knew instantly that she was lying just in case the others were listening in on the call as well.

"Takada, just calm down and answer my questions," Light commanded gently, getting a shaky 'ok' in return, "Tell me your name, birthday, and occupation."

Takada fearfully did as he asked, shaking violently in sheer terror as she did so. It was understandable. Who wouldn't be terrified if they were locked in the back of a delivery truck who knew where and with no way out?

"Do you remember what you're supposed to do at a time like this?" Light asked, knowing that only L would know that he wasn't referring to her personal safety in any way.

"_Yes, and I did it just the way you told me…I succeeded."_

"Takada, you sound calm enough," Light stood from his chair, one palm bracing his weight against his desk after rejoicing in his mind over Mello's death, "Now, let's talk about your location. Do you know where you are?"

"_I was locked inside a truck, and there's a motorcycle in it too. Oh, I was able to see a road sign that said 'To Nagano' when we got on the highway. I'm inside a building right now…I'm locked in the back, but there's a small window and I can see that it's parked indoors,"_ Takada swallowed the growing lump in her throat before she continued. She'd never been as scared in her entire life as she was at this moment, _"I was stripped naked, but I didn't resist, and I did exactly what you told me to do, with my survival as top priority."_

She was beginning to sound like she was seeking his approval. Lawliet resisted the urge to roll his eyes at this simple-minded woman.

"_I called you as soon as I got the chance, and I'm going to stay put and make no false moves, like you said."_

"Don't worry. We'll come to you soon," Light replied, sounding like he was genuinely concerned for her safety even though he couldn't care less about what happened to his pawn.

Takada then hung up in fear of the 'guard' that was coming back. Light knew that she would be contacting Mikami for as many names as possible to write in until she was rescued.

"I certainly hope that Takada-san meets no further misadventures," Lawliet commented as he popped a candy into his mouth and spoke before swallowing, "That would be quite unfortunate."

"Quit it, Ryuzaki," Light snapped as he stood, "I'm not in the mood for your games while Takada is in danger."

"I meant nothing by it, Yagami-kun," Lawliet replied innocently, "Merely stating facts."

"Well, keep them to yourself," Light turned, "Aizawa, Ide; let's go try to track her phone signal. That way we can find out where she is and get her out."

"Got it," Ide nodded and walked out with the other two men, leaving Lawliet and Matsuda behind in the control room.

Things were more or less silent after they left. Matsuda tinkered around with a Rubix cube – which he was utterly failing in solving – while Rem came in after a while to see her father. She ended up drifting off in his lap when Lawliet leaned back and used one foot on the floor to gently rock the chair. He stroked her messy hair absently as his mind worked as swiftly as it always did, going over countless scenarios and their outcomes and the outcomes of the outcomes.

After an hour and about forty-five minutes after the other men left, Ebony stumbled into the control room, looking sweaty and completely exhausted.

"You alright, Ebony-chan? You're not getting sick again, are you?" Matsuda asked in concern. Both Ebony and Lawliet had been reintroduced to the evils of morning sickness that accompanied most pregnancies. She kept having to get up and run from the room to throw up anything she'd managed to eat.

"I'm fine, Matsuda-san. Just tired," Ebony weakly took a seat by Lawliet, who quickly wrapped one arm around her shoulders to encourage her to lean on him. His other kept a careful grip on their child, "Everything's fine. No worries."

"Good," Lawliet gently kissed her just by the corner of her closed right eye, "I don't like it when you're at risk from anything."

They had decided to keep her pregnancy secret, not wanting Light to get any new scheming ideas as he was apt to do whenever presented with any weaknesses to exploit. Lawliet gripped her shoulder a little tighter at the idea of something happening to her, especially while she was carrying their second child. He was glad that this whole thing would be coming to an end before her body started showing any signs of her pregnancy. This also meant that they wouldn't be bringing another child into Kira's world. This child would never know Kira.

Not if he had any say in it.

"Hey, is your back ok?" Ebony jumped immediately when Matsuda poked her back, left bare by the halter top she was wearing. She whirled around instinctively and her elbow caught him in the temple. Ebony quickly unraveled the braid her hair had been done up in and smoothed it over her back, aided by Lawliet's long hand to help cover her four shoulder blades.

"Matsuda!" Ebony hissed at the dazed man on the floor before she swooned slightly from her sudden movements, using Lawliet's shoulder for support again, "I've told you all not to _do_ that!"

-oooOooo-

Near turned the finger puppet in his hands, delicately working with a tiny brush he'd dipped in crimson paint. Once satisfied with his work, he cleaned the brush and set it back in the puppet kit. Then he held the puppet a bit farther from his face so as to scrutinize the overall result.

The small puppet had long white hair, a black body, and pink eyes with crimson pupils. A small holster was carved on its right side along with a cross over its chest, a tiny dot of silver under its right ear. The puppet wore a small smile on its white face.

Since it was Ebony, Near had taken a lot longer to make this puppet than he had the others. Mello's was a lot of work too, but Ebony's puppet counterpart had still taken much longer. He gently placed it next to the puppet of L and the slightly smaller puppet of their daughter, Rem. He placed his puppet on her other side, close enough for the sides to touch like they were holding hands again.

Even Near himself wasn't exactly sure why he was so fond of Ebony. He seemed to see her as a mother/sister figure, making her probably the only other living creature he had any tolerance for if she wasn't useful to him. He suspected that the attachment might stem from how they looked alike, both with white hair and basically colorless skin. As much as it didn't seem like it, he _was_ human, and humans gravitated to those that looked like them. It was simple primal instincts from when moving in herds was the key to survival.

Near glanced over at the trio of puppets to his left; one blond, one a redhead, and one with blue-tipped black hair. If he knew Ebony like he thought he did and if she'd been given the chance earlier, the possibility of her going to confront them would have been a certainty. Their upcoming meeting in two days would be wearing on her nerves by this point and set her protective instincts on fire, for lack of a better term. He wondered vaguely if he should have requested L to keep her away from the warehouse so that she would be safe, but knew that it would have served no purpose. Ebony was far too stubborn to allow herself to be left behind while those she cared about went and put themselves in such a dangerous situation as facing Kira. Not to mention his proxy who had the Death Note and was more than willing to use it.

He certainly hoped that no one would be lost in the Yellow Box warehouses. Enough people had already died because of this case, _for_ this case, and more casualties were just not wanted, nor were they needed.

The kidnapping of Takada Kiyomi, though, was a rather unexpected move from the trio from the Wammy's House. He had clicked the news off just seconds after the report came in, already piecing together what was occurring. Mello had clearly decided to use his overzealous methods yet again in a last-ditch attempt to usurp from him the glory of solving the Kira case. Kidnapping Takada was his only hope as he saw it. He knew this wouldn't interfere with his plans, though. He had already reconfirmed the meeting with Light and knew that absolutely nothing had changed. A few people had just been moved out of their way.

Unfortunately, it seemed that the pieces had been only removable through death.

'_Yagami Light…so you truly are a genius,'_ Near irately flicked the finger puppet of Kira over before standing him back up and repeating the process like any child would when they had in their hands a likeness of someone they despised, _'A genius worthy of tricking us along this pathway for so long. Somehow that makes the notion of being played less bitter. But I can assure you this…'_

Near lifted the puppet of Kira and viciously squashed it between his pale fingers, distorting and warping its appearance.

'_We will win.'

* * *

_Author's Note: So how was that? Did you like Matt's story? I literally thought it up in about two minutes. No joke. I had realized that Matt was lacking in a back story and thought it worked really well for this at-Death's-door moment.

**TheMythOfNormality:** Though he's close, Light isn't the Devil. He doesn't deserve such a title. Bleh!

**MythCreatorWriter:** Yeah, I roll my eyes every time Light refers to himself as God too. Makes me wanna smack his perfect little face. Ugh! And I couldn't resist making L blink when Ebony told him she was pregnant. It was just too perfect! I nearly posted the chapter without that. That would have sucked.

**Tashio:** Yeah. That's what it means.

**Kit-Kat Punk-lover:** Ha! Your reviews always make me smile!

**Timekeeper101:** The 780 day rule doesn't matter to Ebony. Remember, she's half Shinigami, so she's completely immune to the Death Note, meaning both she and the baby are safe with or without that rule. You raise an interesting point about L being killed by the Death Note, though. I'm not sure what that situation would entail...Glad you like the bell thing.

**Madeline Cullen:** I'm glad I'm getting this whole kid thing right and that her pregnancy works. I almost didn't do it, but then I realized it added a whole other tension to the story that would be unique compared to others posted here.

**xlostinmyownworldx:** GO LOOK AT TECH!!!! SEE YOUR CHARACTER LIVE!!!!!!!!!!! ahem....Sorry. Doctor Frankenstein moment....

**Lunarobi Pride:** Don't spaz out! It's ok! Calm down! No crying! Not allowed!

**nekosoulreaper:** That would be funny, but it seemed more logical for them to keep the pregnancy a secret rather than tell everyone. I'm sure Matsuda would have said some pretty funny things, though...

**Orohippus:** I'm sorry that you would hate me forever....That makes me....not sad. I expect to be hated by people.

**Sonar:** I can't help it! Ide is so pick-on-able! He sets himself up for that, so it's his own fault.

**Magpie-chan:** Yes, I used your second child idea. I almost didn't, but then it became awesome in my mind. I just had to get used to it. And you totally need to tell me where you got a double-sided axe and chainsaw. Don't give it to Ebony, though...She'd use it.....Wait, do give it to her!

**Alexandritee:** No! Not true! Did you know that people who have a healthy sex life actually live longer than those who don't? They're just being healthy! And Thanksgiving is just when family all gets together for a huge meal in the middle of the day and gives thanks for what they have and then spends the rest of the day lazing about since turkey makes you sleepy, especially when in such massive quantities. It's kind of like Christmas, only you exchange food rather than gifts.

**Fizzwizzler:** Ha! Lucky. I hope I end up with a person like that when I start dating.

**The Blonde One:** Wow. I'm glad you like my story enough to stay up till 2:41 to read it. That's the best compliment an author can receive.

**xxNoTimeToRegret:** Yes. Ryuk and Rem are just adorable. I actually want to give them both a huge hug! Ryuk looks scary, but then he doesn't. He seems snuggly!

**x-X-xDarkWolfx-X-x:** Dude, I'm honored you gave up so much time to read my stories! I never really expected them to be this popular! Please don't get grounded so that you can continue reading my updates!

**Stains Of Blood:** Thank you so much. I'm glad everyone seems to like the idea of another baby.

**crazyasian12:** Yeah. Light is a fucking bastard. I promise to keep up the good work.

-HaleyJo

_**(P.S. GO SEE TECH!!! ****GO SEE TECH!!!! GO SEE TECH!!!!!!)**_


	23. Vulnerable

Author's Note: Another chapter. Don't expect anything major to happen. This one's pretty peaceful, if a bit angsty.

* * *

**23. VULNERABLE**

Ebony blinked her eyes open sleepily, her pupils shifting sizes for a second before they shrank to the proper size for the dull sunlight seeping through the heavy curtains. It couldn't be more than around seven in the morning. She yawned quietly and stretched, feeling her ligaments and muscles and bones all popping back into place after turning in early for along night's rest. Her worry for her husband and daughter was weighing on her shoulders already, but add to that the knowledge of another baby on the way and the chaos from Takada's kidnapping yesterday? Gods, she had been completely and utterly exhausted! Everything had gone so completely haywire! She played with one of her curls, her mind taking her over the course of the last twenty-four hours even though she didn't want it to.

Ebony was suddenly distracted from her thoughts when she felt a slight tug on the blankets. Smiling despite her morbid musings, the white haired young woman rolled over with a pleasant 'good morning' ready to be said only to die on her lips at the wonderful sight that greeted her.

Lawliet was lying beside her as she had known from how she couldn't battle for control of the sheets, but his penetrating eyes were shockingly hidden beneath heavy lids. His smooth, faintly pink lips were parted just a bit, deep, calm breaths passing through them and allowing a speck of surprisingly white teeth to show. The dark circles beneath his closed eyes made him look even more exhausted, but he still looked so amazingly peaceful.

Ebony smiled gently and reached forward to brush a few wayward strands of midnight hair away from his porcelain, unorthodoxly handsome face. There were two things that made Lawliet into the picture of innocence, and those two things were smiling and sleeping. Neither of them was terribly common, but sleeping was without a doubt the rarest phenomenon. She had probably only seen him sleep a handful of times, even after they'd been married and spent every night together. She loved it whenever she managed to catch him in his most vulnerable moment.

Especially during grave times such as these. The Kira case took up all of his thoughts and he didn't often have the spare time to share their bed with her at night anymore. He was usually up all night trying to find ways to keep more people from dying. He normally stayed up all night at the Wammy's House as well, but he would spend his nights there holding and watching her while she slept, making her feel more safe and more loved than she ever had in her entire life put together. Nowadays Lawliet could only take a night or two off every now and then to lie beside her, but it was usually after she was already asleep so she could only rise to his gunmetal eyes willing her awake.

But this time she'd caught him asleep and she wasn't going to waste the moment. She had tried to get a photo of him sleeping once, just to prove that it was really possible for him to do so, but she'd quickly learned that he was a very, _very_ light sleeper. She'd only gotten one foot out from under the covers before he was awake and giving her an amused smirk in response to her flushed countenance.

Holding her breath, Ebony inched forward as slowly as she could until their noses were just a couple inches apart. She let her breath out very slowly, striving not to wake him, and delicately placed a hand on the side of his face. He shifted slightly, making her hold her breath again, but he then settled and slumbered on, a slight murmur of something she didn't catch passing his lips before his deep breathing resumed. Her smile returned and she tenderly caressed his cheek with her thumb, biting her lip around her smile when he unconsciously moved toward her hand, seeking her touch even when asleep.

Continuing to take great care to keep from waking him, Ebony lifted her hand to trace her fingertips along the warm line of his shoulder, left bare since he'd removed his ever-present white cotton shirt before climbing into bed. She studied one of his hands next, her curiosity coming from her artistic fascination with the human hand.

Lawliet's hands were long and slender, could almost be described as feminine if not for their size, and very graceful in appearance. Unlike most men, his palms and fingers were pale and soft from lack of any childhood roughhousing or adulthood hard labor. The very tips of his fingers were a bit calloused from typing on computers and laptops, his thumbs and index fingers especially from his odd way of handling physical objects. But his hands were otherwise unmarked by the harsh, outside world he had been physically separated from since he was about five years old.

They were very much unlike her own hands, which were still heavily marked by her life in the ring and probably would be for many more years to come. It was kind of funny, actually. The man having the hands of a higher, more privileged rearing and the woman having the hands of a wild, untamed brute. It was usually always the other way around and it made her have to hold in a slight giggle.

She would never figure out and always wonder how she managed to do it, but Ebony somehow was able to lift his lanky arm, snuggle closer, and drape said arm across her shoulders like he usually held her in bed. She nudged her nose against his and happily rested her palms against his bare chest, feeling the warmth from his smooth skin and the rhythmic thumping of his heartbeat. It was a sound she cherished more than anything else in the world except for that of her daughter's laughter. Her eyes continued to roam softly over his peculiar face, taking in how he seemed completely untouched by the world's evils when in peaceful slumber. He looked so innocent and wholly pure for someone his age, and even for someone several years his junior.

'_Gods, I wish I had a camera,'_ Ebony sighed wistfully and rested her forehead against his, her eyelids lowering halfway but refusing to close and miss a moment of this, _'Maybe I should start keeping one under the pillow.'_

She had no warning when his eyes suddenly snapped open, his pupils wavering for just a moment before returning to their usual overly-dilated state. The only reason that she didn't startle was because she had been lulled into such a peaceful frame of mind by watching her husband sleep. His eyes looked over her face, revealing a loving warmth he only showed to her and their baby girl. The intimate flame seemed to bring his eyes to life, sparking onyx stones set in rings of dark, molten silver.

She grinned slightly at the way his eyes fit him so well by the Japanese allegory on justice. Black for guilty and white for innocent, very few falling in the thin ring of grey.

"Good morning, sleepyhead," Ebony closed the inch of space between him and placed a sweet greeting kiss on his lips, "You were really conked out, there."

"You looked like a slumbering goddess," Lawliet sleepily defended himself. His wife could only chuckle at the adorable picture he made when his mind was more awake than his body. Lawliet tucked his head under her chin, tickling her throat with his wayward hair as his hand lazily ran up and down the curve of her waist, "It is your fault that I fell asleep."

"Oh, really?" Ebony wrapped her arms around his shoulders and dug her fingers into his unkempt raven locks. She smiled as Lawliet began trailing small kisses up and down her throat, his tongue occasionally leaving little wet spots on her skin, "And I have to believe you since you have the most brilliant mind currently on the planet?"

"Well, yes! Of course you do," Lawliet smiled as the woman in his arms shook with a giggle attack, "It is only wise to listen to those smarter than yourself."

"Hmh!" Ebony scoffed, noticing that the hand she had been analyzing so intently just minutes before had slipped under the edge of her black silk nightgown, running up from her thigh to the side of her ribcage with a teasing slowness, "You know a lot of things, Lawliet, but your reason for falling asleep is clearly not one of them. But don't worry, I forgive you. You _are_ only human, after all."

Lawliet grinned, always amused whenever Ebony acted high and mighty like this, saying little mistakes weren't his fault since to err is human. He had to admit that it was a bit of a turn on, which was probably why so many men fell prey to her wherever she went whether she was aware of it or not. A beautiful face and body combined with a feisty attitude was a dangerous combination if she could ever learn to use it properly.

"Oh, my apologies!" Lawliet replied without missing a beat before rolling atop her and cupping her face in his hands, grinning excitedly down at her willingly trapped form, "Please allow me to make it up to you."

-oooOooo-

Ebony stretched her arms above her head, arching her back to relieve some of the tension that had built up. She folded her arms across the desk and rested her chin on them, shifting slightly in her seat since she was a bit sore in her lower regions from a very passionate session of lovemaking that morning. Two very passionate sessions of lovemaking, actually. Lawliet had followed her into the shower…

'_You cannot wear that man out,'_ Ebony shifted her seat again, squeezing her knees together. She knew that the investigation had him wound a bit too tight, so he was a little rougher than usual, but she didn't mind. She hadn't been completely gentle either. She bit her lip around a grin as she recalled the little mark her teeth had made on his left shoulder about an hour ago.

"Are you alright, Ebony-chan?" Matsuda asked as he noticed her shifting in her seat again. It wasn't like her to be so fidgety when she was thinking deeply on something, and the glazed look in her eyes said she was definitely thinking deeply.

"I'm fine, Matsuda-san," Ebony sent him a reassuring grin, trying to stop moving around so much and ignore the slight ache between her legs, "I think I must have slept funny. I'm just a little sore."

Lawliet felt a slight grin tugging at his lips, knowing that sleeping funny had absolutely nothing to do with the soreness in her nether regions. He knew that he'd been a tad bit rough with her both in bed and then in the shower not ten minutes later, but he couldn't help himself. With their meeting with Near growing ever closer by the hour, by the minute, Lawliet felt the need to be with his wife as much as possible in the time that preceded the encounter. He didn't want any regrets like not spending enough time with her should something go wrong and rob him of ever being able to be intimate with her again.

Ebony absently rubbed her belly, searching for signs of her baby even though she knew it would be quite some time yet before she would be able to feel it. Their meeting with Near was tomorrow, and discovering her pregnancy had only increased her apprehension for the meeting. She didn't want to walk into a situation in which she could die while their baby was growing inside her, but she knew she had no choice. If worst came to worst, she could tell Light and Mikami that she was pregnant and they perhaps would spare her…

No. Lawliet had said that if he died, she would, and vice versa. If not for the sake of her happiness, she hoped that they would be left alive so that her baby could be born. And she didn't want to leave Rem behind either.

Ebony shook her head. She didn't want to think about that right now. She stood from her wheeled chair and walked to collapse on one of the couches, linking her fingers together behind her head. She glanced over when she saw Lawliet dropping sugar cubes into the coffee she'd made for him. Seeing his long hands made her mind jump back to their love session in the shower…

"Oh, quit it," Ebony mumbled to herself, rolling over so that she was facing the cushions of the couch to hide the blush she could feel in her face, _'He seriously has made me into a pervert…'_

Light glanced over at Ebony, wondering why she was acting so weird. Now that he thought of it, both she and L had been acting a little funny since Takada had confirmed the Death Note switch four days ago. It was like they were trying to hide something and just doing a really poor job at hiding the fact that they were hiding something.

At least, it seemed like a lousy job to him. He doubted any of the others were observant enough to notice, but it didn't matter. Soon every one of these idiots would be out of his hair forever and he would be truly free to act as Kira, the god of a new, perfect and just world. He would keep Mikami to be his eyes, but everyone else including Misa would have to go. After three years of hard work, he would finally be achieving the goal he had been striving for since his last year of high school.

Lawliet stood from his chair and moved to curl into his usual seated position on the couch across from the one Ebony was lying on. His thumb pressed firmly to his lips and he allowed his dark eyes to trace over the lovely curves of her waist and hip that jutted up from her lying on her side like that. The sight pulled his mind far from the Kira case as he recalled when he had first seen her lying like that two years ago, only she had been concealed by nothing more than bed sheets at the Imperial Hotel...

-----

_Lawliet gazed at Ebony's slumbering form, scrolling his eyes over the curve of her hip through the hotel sheets and then roaming over what skin was exposed above the blankets. He then sighed, knowing he couldn't be distracted at the moment. If his calculations were correct and his memory wasn't impaired from dying, he only had one more day to make a call to avoid any panic or drastic moves. Sitting up, he reached over the side of the bed and dug around in the pocket of his discarded jeans, retrieving his cell phone and flipping it open. He settled with his back against the headboard, his other hand entangling with one of Ebony's. He smiled faintly when she squeezed his hand in her sleep, unconsciously imploring him to stay by her side._

"Hello?"_ Lawliet turned his head away from Ebony so his voice would be going away from her and hopefully avoid waking her from her much needed sleep._

"_Roger," Lawliet responded, hearing the very slight intake of breath from surprise on the other end of the line, "This is L."_

"L…you haven't been using your computer,"_ An elderly man by the name of Roger answered once his vocal chords resumed their intended function, trying to get his voice steady again, _"I thought you wouldn't ever again."

"_Yes, well, many things have been happening in this most recent stretch of the Kira case," Lawliet said in his listless voice, his fingers beginning to subconsciously toy with Ebony's, "I did die, but not permanently, so it seems. Watari, however…." Lawliet's head bowed in sorrow, "I'm very sorry Roger, but Watari has become another victim to Kira."_

_He heard Roger sigh sadly through the line, guessing correctly that the other man was currently taking up a photo of Watari, Quillish Wammy. He and Roger had been good friends for many, many years. While Quillish had founded the Wammy's House orphanages, Roger had helped out later on even though he wasn't really very good with children._

"I see,"_ He finally said at length, knowing Lawliet was probably taking Watari's death harder than he was. The young man had seen Watari as a father figure since he was still quite young, _"What are you going to do now?"

"_Well, seeing as how Kira now believes me to be dead, it would probably be best to allow him to continue thinking that and search for evidence from the shadows again," Lawliet grinned without humor at the situation, "If I know Kira as well as I believe I do, L's death will be kept a secret from the world so that he can assume that role, thus gaining the ability to avert the investigation from himself and continue to judge criminals around the world."_

"Yes, that would probably be best,"_ Roger agreed, seeing the logic in his plan. He would be able to investigate safely from the shadows as long as Kira believed he was dead, _"Are you going to continue the investigation from Japan?"

"_Normally I would say yes to that question, but I have someone I would very much like to keep safe," Lawliet responded, looking down at the slumbering the girl beside him, her fingers clamped around his, "For her safety, it would probably be best for us to move farther away from Kira until we are certain of his capture."_

"Her?"_ Lawliet smiled slightly at the surprise and curiosity in the older man's tone._

"_Yes. Ebony Rose Accott. You will soon discover that you will be unable to find any documents of her existence since everyone was under the impression that she died at birth. She has a great deal of knowledge about how Kira carries out his judgments and she has an exceptional memory," Lawliet's smile grew slightly, "She is also very important to me in my life now."_

"I see,"_ This 'I see' was lighter than his last one and Lawliet believed he could hear a hint of a smile in the other man's voice, _"When will you two be arriving back?"

"_A few days yet," Lawliet replied, "Ebony has never left the country before, nor has she ever been so high off the ground in a suspended vehicle. We should arrive in no more than three days. The twenty-eighth at the latest."_

"Very well, L. I will make sure you both have a room by the time you arrive,"_ Roger paused for a moment before continuing, _"You should probably begin instructing this Ebony on how to speak English."

"_Yes. I believe you are correct in that, Roger," Lawliet replied, "I will call you again once we are in the air."_

"Yes, L. And I'm sorry about Watari."

_With a quick thank you, Lawliet snapped his phone shut, placing it on the small table on his side of the bed. When he turned to look at Ebony, he was surprised to see her crimson and coral eyes staring up at him, the hand not clutching his holding the sheets modestly over her chest._

"_Who was that?" She asked._

"_Roger, a friend of Watari's," Lawliet replied, "Watari's true name was Quillish Wammy, a world-renowned inventor who used the fortune he gained from his inventions to open orphanages for especially gifted children around the world. The Wammy's House is what they are called."_

"_Hee! That's a funny name," Ebony giggled slightly before sobering up, "So, you're an orphan?"_

"_Yes," Lawliet nodded, "The Wammy's Houses are used to raise successors to the L name to take over my position when I either retire or die early. That is what would have happened had I remained dead."_

"_Oh…Are you the first 'L', then?"_

"_Yes," Lawliet nodded again, "I began looking into cold cases and current cases that had halted in their tracks when I was fifteen years old. I had no one close to me and I was very bored without any steady intellectual stimulation on hand. Watari noticed my interests after I had solved a few highly difficult cases by leaving untraceable notes for the police, and helped me to broaden my scope to cases around the country and then to cases world-wide not long after. L was born from that after the law enforcements of the world began to notice how a nameless, faceless detective was closing previously deemed 'unsolvable' cases around the globe."_

"_Wow. That's pretty cool," Ebony mused, her fingers twitching slightly as Lawliet's fingertips drifted softly up and down the sensitive skin under her forearm. It almost tickled, so she used the conversation to distract herself from possibly giving that tidbit of information away, "When were you acknowledged as 'L'?"_

"_When I was seventeen," Lawliet answered, his fingertips following the faint blue trails of her veins from her wrist to the crease of her elbow, "Quillish Wammy began to operate as 'Watari' at that time as well. That made contact with police much easier since I refused to show my face. I couldn't act as L as efficiently if criminals knew what face to watch out for and give to hit men to eliminate."_

"_That's understandable," Ebony nodded. People probably thought L was a terrible coward to hide himself like he did, but it made perfect sense. He was protecting other people by protecting himself. His mind was many people's only hope, and it would be selfish of him to endanger it just to be famous like other talented people did._

_Lawliet sighed as he slid back down, resting his head against Ebony's chest. He recalled his initial evaluation of her back when she had brought him cake in thanks for helping her with her books. He had told her that she had deep insight into things and a unique mind to looking forward to consequences even if they didn't involve her in any way. He hadn't thought of it as anything but possibly beneficial to the case at the time, but now he was thankful for that trait since it gave her the ability to understand him without him having to spell everything out for her. Since he wasn't all that great with explaining his personal emotions, it meant a great deal to him that she could understand him nonverbally._

_He frowned suddenly when he noticed that Ebony was tugging on a lock of his hair._

"_Yes?" He asked as he lifted his head._

"_Can you get off of me?" Ebony asked, cutting off his 'no' before he could say it, "I'm hungry."_

"_Ah! I see," Lawliet grinned, sitting up too quickly for her to grab the sheets and enjoying the sight they uncovered, "Yes, I suppose food is in order."_

"_Well, yeah!" Ebony sat up, untucking her sugar curls from behind her ears in an unconscious effort to cover her breasts, "Food provides needed energy and keeps your system running regularly."_

_Lawliet bit back an inappropriate comment that would surely gain him a whack across the back of his skull as he pulled on his jeans. He thought back over the past two days they'd spent in the hotel, and he realized that neither of them had gotten fully dressed since Ebony followed his directions to the hotel and subsequently into his arms. He smiled at the realization and was eager to continue their free behavior until they left for the Wammy's House._

_Lawliet smiled gently as he admired Ebony on the phone, ordering them food with just the bed sheets concealing her nakedness. Her back was left bare all the way down to the base of her spine, showing her double shoulder blades that most would see as a deformity unless they knew what she really was. Even so, she had a beautiful back. It sounded like an odd thing to notice, but it was true. During the age of stone sculpture, many artists would have desperately coveted her as a model. She'd have been treated as a princess if they thought that would encourage her to pose for them._

_He approached her just as she hung up the phone and ran his hand down her spine, proud of the flush his touch brought to her cheeks._

"_Is it your mission in life to embarrass me?" Ebony asked, quirking a white brow in his direction._

"_Not at all," Lawliet rested his chin on her shoulder, his hand moving around from her back to her stomach under the sheet, fingers splayed against the skin of her abdomen, "Merely to show you how breathtakingly beautiful you are."_

"_You're sweet, no matter what other people say," Ebony then looked up at the ceiling in mock thought, making that humming noise, "Well, maybe not. You are a lying, manipulative prick sometimes too."_

_Lawliet simply chuckled in her ear, doing nothing to refute her claim since it was completely true. As he allowed his curious hand to trek upward, well beyond the point of decency, he thought of how he was going to go back into hiding now and how he would be able to take Ebony with him this time. Suddenly, going back into hiding sounded far better than it used to before he came to take on the challenge of the Kira case._

-------

Realizing that he was far too frisky to maintain a level of normalcy at the moment, Lawliet stood from his seat and tapped Ebony on the shoulder. Once he gained her attention, he leaned down and twisted a lock of her hair away from her ear.

"I don't particularly wish to remain down here, considering the less than desired company," Lawliet shot a quick glare at the back of Light's head before turning his attention back to her, "So I am going to go back upstairs. Care to join me?"

Ebony blinked at him once before understanding dawned in her features. She smiled shyly and nodded, taking his hand to help her to stand. They ignored Matsuda when he asked where they were going, determined to spend some time alone.

They spent the entire day up on their floor, playing with Rem and just being together. Once they put their little girl to bed – early considering how stressful the next day promised to be – they retired to the bedroom and jumped beneath the sheets immediately after divesting each other of their clothes. They spent many hours expressing their love for each other through tender caresses and soft moans, both feeling like their time together was coming to a frighteningly swift end.

"Are you scared?" Ebony asked breathlessly as Lawliet's fingers dipped between her legs and his mouth nipped along her jaw. Her hips bucked against his hand and she whimpered slightly, wanting more than his fingers even after so many hours of intimacy.

"…Yes," Lawliet admitted, his words vibrating against her skin, "I don't want to talk about tomorrow."

"Ok," Ebony placed her hands against his chest and pushed, rolling Lawliet onto his back and climbing on top, causing him to withdraw his fingers. She heard him moan slightly as she let her body rub against his and his hands came up to splay against her small back, pressing her closer to continue the movement. Smiling, she trailed her lips across his cheek before licking around the shell of his ear and drawing the lobe between her teeth. His ears were his most sensitive spots above his waistline, something Ebony had learned rather quickly and used often when sweet talking him or whenever they made love.

She felt his hands on her hips lifting her up and let him take her away. She was trying to memorize absolutely everything about him, and she could tell that he was trying to do the same.

Both hoped that this wasn't the last time they had to reacquaint themselves with each other's bodies.

* * *

Author's Note: As I said, nothing much happens. I just wanted to fit in a part when L was sleeping. No L fanfic is complete without seeing him sleep at some point.

**MythCreatorWriter:** I'm glad you liked Matt's background story. I thought he needed one. I'm going to see if I can give Near and Mello one at some point too, but no guarantees.

**Timekeeper101:** I know the background isn't too awesome, but I was working with just colored pencils. Yeah, thanks for the info on how L and Ebony's lives would work like that. I love it when my reviewers remind me of stuff. They have saved me from making irreversible mistakes many times.

**Stains Of Blood:** Yeah, Near is a vicious little demon child. But in the cool way, not the bad way.

**TheMythOfNormality:** Light's eyes only glow in the story for theatric emphasis. It sure was fun watching him get shot, though...Wish I could of done it....

**xlostinmyownworldx:** Sorry I made you cry. Oh, and I fixed Tech's name. Analah rather than Alanah. Kinda sad, because one of my friend's name is Alanah.

**Alexandritee:** I'm glad you liked Tech's picture. Pretty obvious why Matt fell for her, huh?

**xxNoTimeToRegret:** Yes, Ryuk is snuggly. I would love to give him a big hug!

**Fizzwizzler:** I sure hope you like this chapter as much as the other one. It is paced much slower, though.

**Kit-Kat Punk-lover:** I loved killing Takada! World-class bitch....

**Me and Gaara 4ever:** I like you already. I'm a big Gaara fan too. I also hiss at Light like you do. Frequently.

**x-X-x-DarkWolf-x-X-x:** Sorry about calling you 'dude'. I call everyone 'dude', even if they are female. Habitual speech pattern. I'm glad you liked when Near squished Kira's puppet. It sounded like something he would do.

**Tashio:** Maybe, maybe not. I can't tell you. It would ruin the surprise! I also just love torturing my readers....(evil Near smile)....

**crazyasian12:** Your name always makes me smile! Geeze, everyone loves the Near puppet thing.

**Scarlet-Black-Rose:** Being told that a story is keeping your attention is one of the greatest compliments an author can receive. Thank you so much!

**Lunarobi Pride:** I'm glad you liked Tech's picture. I loved working on it for....hours....I have decided on the baby, but I won't be telling anyone anything. So, ha!

Please review for me! They are my apples and sweets and toys!

-HaleyJo


	24. Drive

Author's Note: Yet another chapter in my story that I had no idea was going to be so long. I'm way ahead of you all on chapter 32. Anywho, please enjoy.  


* * *

**24. DRIVE**

Not for the first time since being dragging mentally kicking and screaming into this investigation nearly three years ago, Ebony was thanking the bare-knuckled fighting for giving her the ability to shut off her emotions when under situations of extreme stress.

She absently tossed a bright red apple to Ryuk, who proceeded to eagerly devour the juicy fruit as fast as he possibly could. She knew that this was officially the last day of the Kira case no matter which side won. They would win or Kira would win, but either way it was all ending here and now. The only difference between the two would be the death toll. If they won, it would probably be restricted to just a few. If Kira won…

….all but one of them would be dying today. Ebony didn't expect to live if no one else did, what with her connection to Lawliet, and she wouldn't want to regardless.

'_Maybe I can take Light with me and make it all of us dead…'_

The worst part of it was, since there would be no one else they knew or could trust on the outside, they had no choice but to bring little Rem with them. They couldn't leave her alone here. Knowing her, she would find a way out and try to follow them, like when they left her with Mello, Matt, and Tech and she'd followed them to headquarters. The last thing they needed was to go to confront everyone while knowing their daughter was wandering the streets in search of them and at the mercy of everyone and everything bad out there. Of course Ebony had protested probably in the most avid and loud manner that she ever had used to protest anything before, but her husband's undeniable logic had forced her into seething submission.

Sometimes she hated that ridiculously smart brain of his.

"T-Today's the day, Light," Matsuda grinned, trying his best to hide his nervousness and not succeeding at all.

'_He needs acting lessons,'_ Ebony mused to herself, using her rather dry humor to steady herself from slipping too far into her old fighting persona. She hated that persona, however useful it could be. She had tried so hard to leave that part of her life behind in the past where it belonged.

"I really don't think Near will show us anything that will help sole this case, but we've got no choice but to go," Light addressed everyone as Ryuk snickered over his shoulder. He then turned to the electric safe that held the Death Note, "Ok, I'm going to get the notebook out. Everyone, enter your pin numbers."

Just as Ide was finishing up entering his code, a large letter N appeared on the screen, "It's Near."

"_Good morning everybody,"_ Ebony nearly cracked a smile. It seemed that most Wammy's kids had such good manners, even if they were insincere. Except for Mello, that is, _"For starters, I've released Amane. You can call her if you'd like to check for yourself."_

It wasn't long before Light had his phone out and typed in Misa's number.

"_I don't know why, but I'm in a deluxe suite at the Imperial Hotel,"_ Misa chirped over the phone loud enough for everyone else to hear, _"Must be their way of apologizing or something. It's great!"_

Lawliet sighed heavily. Though it was a well-known fact, it was still somewhat unpleasantly surprising to find that there really were people that dumb and selfish in the world. It was no wonder that the majority of human society was going to Hell in a hand basket. How depressing.

"Near," Lawliet approached the screen as Light hung up, his thumb against his lips, "It will be acceptable for Ebony to hold on to the Death Note, yes?"

"_Of course,"_ Near agreed instantly, _"That would be the best choice for me. The rest of us as well since she is too strong to have it stolen from her."_

Light was somewhat irked that L had stepped in like that, but he didn't protest. Their logic made sense and he'd been planning on having Ebony carry Rem's old notebook anyway for those very same reasons.

"Also, we are going to need to speak to Mogi-san," Lawliet continued, "The Death Note is under computerized locks and we will need his pin number in order to access it."

"_Alright,"_ There was some shuffling before Mogi's voice came over the speaker, _"Mogi, here. My number is 62-324."_

Ebony rushed to the safe before Aizawa could and punched in the number, carefully pulling the door open once a resounding 'click' told her of its unlocked state. She pulled the notebook out and couldn't help but feel sad. Other than the holster and the pentagram-cross she was wearing, this was the last physical piece of her mother's memory. Her thumb glided gently over one of the corners before she held it to her chest and walked back over toward the mike.

"I have the Death Note, Near," Ebony told the screen, her voice sounding hollow and sad, "I'm going to keep it in my holster. There's no Shinigami attached to this one. She died after killing Watari."

"_Thank you, Ebony. I will see you all at the warehouse, then."_

Near then signed off, leaving the task force to gather their wits and mentally prepare themselves. Everyone was somewhat put off by how Ebony held the Death Note like it was something precious to her in a painful sort of way. They tried to ignore it and brush it off as nerves, as her way of dealing with the stress.

It wasn't just that that was ruffling their nerves, though. Ebony was dressed as though she were going into combat. A set of pants and a shirt of a strange material of unknown, subtly shiny substance conformed to every dip and curve of her body, every inch of her skin covered save for her hands, feet, and face. Kind of like Wedy's outfit when they had gone to capture Higuchi, only it wasn't patent leather. Her holster was still chained about her hips, but it was through the belt loops of her pants to help it sit more firmly, and her pentagram-cross pendant was wrapped around the outside of the shirt's high neck. Oddly enough, there was a bare spot on her upper back that could be just barely glimpsed through her curly hair every now and then. No one could figure out what that was for. Not even Light.

"There's nothing to fret over, love," Lawliet murmured quietly to her, taking the Death Note from her hands and placing it in her hip holster that now held two Death Notes, one of which he was the owner. He held her gently, trying to comfort her after having such a reminder of her dead Shinigami mother thrust under her nose. One hand went under her hair for the patch of bare skin on her back, finding comfort in the feel of her heartbeat, "Everything will be alright."

Aizawa couldn't help but feel pained by watching L trying to comfort his wife from whatever had upset her so much. The couple had indeed been through hell. Ebony had been fighting her whole life alone and then thought she'd lost L that November day back in 2004. While he obviously didn't know a thing about L's history, he doubted that anyone could be that naturally weird and not have had something horrible happen to them in the past. Now they were about to step into a situation in which one or both of them could die and they even had to take their seventeen month old daughter with them despite the risk. He wished that he could help in some way, but he knew there wasn't anything he could do for them.

All they could do at that moment was take comfort in each other, and so he let them be.

"I'm going to go and get her. I'll be right back," Ebony mumbled as she reluctantly extricated herself from Lawliet's arms, headed for the door that led to the hallway and then to the elevator. Her husband didn't move a muscle until she returned with a half-awake Rem in her arms.

Lawliet gently placed a hand on the baby girl's head, stroking the hair she'd inherited from him. He found himself once again mentally praying for her safety like he had that stormy night up on the roof when Ebony first told him that she loved him. He begged for the survival of his Ebony and his Rem. If anyone deserved to live, it was them, especially the baby girl who was the embodiment of innocence. He complied when Ebony passed her over to him and he let her head rest against his shoulder, her tiny arms draping themselves sleepily around his neck.

"I suppose we should be leaving now," Lawliet adjusted his grip on his daughter so that his wife could entangle their hands together, "Near will not appreciate it if we happen to be late from simply lollygagging around here."

It was a tight fit, but everyone was eventually able to struggle into Aizawa's five-passenger car. Aizawa and Matsuda were in the front while Ide, Light, Ebony, Lawliet, and Rem were sitting in the back. In order to have them all fit somewhat comfortably, Ebony ended up sitting on Lawliet's lap while Rem sat in her lap. The little girl was fully awake now but instead of chatting their ears off like she wanted, she kept abnormally silent. She must have known on some level that something very important was going on and opted to refrain from speaking so as not to distract anyone.

Each of the small family stared out the left window, Lawliet's arms wrapped around Ebony and Rem while Ebony had her arms around their baby. Sitting in the fashion that they did, in each other's laps with their arms wrapped around each other, it would have been the most wonderful snapshot of the perfect little family you only saw on TV and in movies.

Ebony started singing her lullaby, gently stroking her daughter's hair while Lawliet ran his thumb repeatedly over Ebony's cheekbone. It was like the others weren't even there, like they were all alone to be as intimate as they pleased.

"When darkness comes show it no fear"

None of the other task force had ever actually heard the lullaby. They'd heard her hum it, even whistle it a couple of time, but never before actually speak the lyrics since they hadn't been with her when she'd sung over Lawliet's grave. Even though it was a somewhat comforting lullaby, Matsuda thought it sounded rather sad and gloomy. A kind of bittersweet song you sang to children who would learn more of what it really meant as they grew older.

"I promise you I will always be here"

Lawliet resisted the urge to cringe at that line as he realized what a stupid promise that was to make to anyone, no matter how close you were. You could never know when you might be forced to break that promise.

"Close your eyes and lay down to sleep

There is no reason for you to weep"

Aizawa's grip on the steering wheel tightened, recalling all the times he'd had to comfort his own wife when she broke down and begged him to quit the Kira investigation. Begged him to come back home and be safe with his other job. He would have to hold her and shush her until she finally cried herself to sleep. She would accept that this was something he had to do when she woke up the next morning and then start the whole painful, heart-wrenching cycle over again.

"Life can be hard and full of pain

But can be washed clean by the rain"

Even though never having experienced the love of a child or spouse in his life, Ide could feel the pain they were passively going through. It was kind of like standing out in the cold until you grew too numb to realize that you were slowly but surely freezing to death. Little by little, minute by minute, and then by the time you did notice, it was far too late and you were already half dead.

"Among all the lies this is always true"

Light resisted the urge to roll his eyes. Truths were so pointless, and you never really got them. People would always be hiding things, even from those they claimed to love more than life itself, something he also found to be complete bullshit. If someone had the choice, they would undoubtedly choose to save their own life. Human beings were far too selfish to truly sacrifice themselves for another person. It was just a fact of life.

"Never doubt that I love you."

Rem gripped the front of her father's white shirt, wishing to know what was going on but deciding not to ask. She knew that her parents were upset and that it had something to do with the bronze haired man sitting on the other side of the eyebrow-less man. Yagami Light was what they called him sometimes while at other times he was addressed as Kira, the bad person who was killing a lot of people. She knew that her daddy was trying to send him to jail, which her mommy had once described to her as a "super, really, majorly big time-out". She also knew that her mommy was trying to help him do this so they would all be safe. That was why they hadn't called her by her name in a really long time, and she missed it. She hoped that the Kira man would go to jail soon so that she could be called Rem again.

Across town at that very moment, a dark haired man was boarding the Shinkansen Tracks that would take him to where he needed to be. Mikami Teru held his briefcase close to his body on his lap. His god needed him now, and it wouldn't do to be stupid and set his briefcase down by his chair for some punk to come along and steal. He adjusted his black, rectangular glasses where they sat on the bridge of his nose before wrapping his fingers around the handle of the case again.

Everything would be unfolding very soon.

-oooOooo-

"Looks like Near and the others are already here," Aizawa said as they slowed to a stop by the warehouse. Ebony looked on in resigned distain, her eyes narrowing slightly in contempt for the place that had been a prison to her for a good chunk of her life. Feeling her daughter shift slightly in her lap, she came to the sudden realization that if Lawliet hadn't gotten her out of there, Rem would have never been born.

She mentally balked at the thought of a future without her baby girl.

"He here?" Rem suddenly asked after Aizawa and Matsuda left to go make sure everything was as the white haired genius had said it would be.

"Yep," Ebony nodded, grinning as Rem began bouncing in her lap and clapping her hands.

"Yay! Unca Near," Lawliet couldn't keep from grinning at her words and could see Ide doing the same from the corner of his eye. Rem had always addressed his successors as her uncles. She'd called Tech her aunt, "He has lots toys?"

"Of course he does, you silly," Ebony nuzzled her nose against her little girl's, "He's obsessed with them, remember?"

"Yes!" Rem nodded vigorously, making her shaggy hair fall in her face. Lawliet chuckled as he helped her get it out of her eyes, "More than R-"

"Shush," Lawliet laid a finger against her lips just in time to keep her name from spilling out at the most inopportune time, "Careful, love."

"Oh! Sorry, Daddy," Rem's face was the picture of regret since disappointing her father was something she absolutely hated to do.

Light looked out the window as Aizawa and Matsuda appeared at the doors to the warehouses again. He found it pretty stupid how L and Ebony were going to such lengths to keep him from discovering their child's name. What good would it be for him to kill the child? He had other plans for her once her troublesome parents were out of his way. Since she was still so young, she could still be molded into whatever he wished, and he would one day need a successor to the title of Kira to carry on his work of purging the world of evil. Light couldn't think of a more perfect form of revenge than using L's own child to do the exact thing L himself was trying to jail him for doing. The once-great detective would be turning over in his grave with each name his little girl wrote into the Death Note.

Light had to hold in a malicious grin at the thought.

His own reasons aside, it was impossible that Mikami would attempt to kill the little girl. He treated violence like it was an infectious disease, so harming a child was completely out of the question. Mikami was also likely to spare Ebony since she would likely be holding her baby at the time in which he would be peeking in to see their names. He wouldn't know that Ebony needed to die too and, even if he did, he wouldn't be able to kill her since her tainted blood shielded her from the Death Note's power.

But that was what the gun at his hip was for. Immune to the Death Note as she was, a Shinigami-human could still bleed.

"It would seem that everything is in order," Lawliet reached across his wife and daughter to open the door, using his foot to push it open, "Shall we?"

* * *

Author's Note: Another slower chapter. Don't worry. The pace will start picking back up again after this. By the way, is anyone else hating Light as much as I am right now? I would love to wring his arrogant little neck! Bastard prick...

**Scarlet-Black-Rose:** Do you know that you misspelled 'squeal', or was that intentional? I am computer lingo illiterate.

**MythCreatorWriter:** Yeah, L sleeping is something people like to put in since he never sleeps. I'm glad you like the thing with his hands. You know that hands are one of my favorite things to draw, so I thought it'd be a cool little thing to add in. Oh, and I have figured out a background story for Mello and Near. I'm not sure how I'll get Near's in, but I've gotten Mello's in! Boo-ya!

**x-X-xDarkWolfx-X-x:** I thought last chapter was cute, too. It hadn't originally been in there, but then I remembered that I hadn't written Lawliet asleep yet and I was like, "Haley, you horrible person! How dare you call yourself an L Lawliet fan and forget to write him sleeping?! Stupid, stupid, stupid, idiot, moron, crazy, psychotic person!"

**Timekeeper101:** Frisky? I suppose so. Sex relieves tension, and they feel like they're going to die soon, so it made sense in my head. I'm glad you liked the flashback. I actually wrote it to be seen right after L came back, but I think it was Mel1983 who said she wanted to see more flashbacks, so I left it alone and hunted for a place to fit it in. I thought it worked right here to make the chapter longer and flow better. I like long chapters as a reader, so I do my best to write them for my readers. You all deserve it.^-^

**Me and Gaara 4ever:** Ha! Your review makes me laugh! Shoot Light in the nuts with a BB gun and then throw Skittles at him! You're funny!

**xlostinmyownworldx:** I'm glad you liked this chapter. Since I used one of your characters, your opinion matters a lot to me. Thank you very much. Oh! And as soon as I finish my parents' Christmas gift, I will begin working on a picture of Matt and Tech together. I may use a scene from the story, or I may not. I'm not sure yet. If you have any scenes you'd like to see, let me know and I'll see what I can do.

**Kit-Kat Punk-lover:** Yep! Adorable sleeping L. Oh, I've been meaning to ask. Why is everything in your pen name capitalized except for 'lover'?

**nekosoulreaver:** I'll get started on a pic of Rem, Ebony, and Lawliet once I finish the one I'm working on of Shinigami Rem and Ebony when she was younger and still in the fights. Not sure when it'll be up. After Christmas probably since I'm working on a pic for my parents for Christmas.

**White Alchemist Taya:** I like that name. Taya. I might use it one day, if you don't mind. 'Vulnerable' does sound like an ominous chapter name, doesn't it? But I thought it fit best since they were opening themselves completely to each other since they feared their time might be up.

**Fizzwizzler:** I liked L's conversation with Roger as well. He needed to be in there somehow.

**Tashio:** Yeah. I'll post a pic of Rem at some point.

**xxNoTimeToRegret:** I like your name. Truly they are words to live by. I bet that's how L thinks most of the time when using people in his cases. See? You're like L! Sweet!

**Lunarobi Pride:** Misa hasn't been in much, I know, but I haven't had anywhere to put her. Kind of like Ohba Tsugumi. He and Obata Takeshi are my idols. Ohba for his writing and Obata for his artwork. I am jealous of his coloring ability. He has helped me to grow as an artist. Looking at his art was what helped me to finally get facial proportions right.

**DarkAngelNeko666: **666! Ha! I'm glad you approve of Ebony as L's mate.

**Uzura:** I inspired you? Cool! Oh, why did your review have so many question marks in it?

**erina destiny:** Don't start crying just yet! You'll fry the computer and then you can't read the ending!

**The Blonde One:** Yes, I want to kill Light too. What does TBO mean? I am computer lingo illiterate.

**HikaruShedio:** I'm glad you liked Tech. Thank **xlostinmyownworldx**. She was kind enough to trust me with her character. I don't think I could do such a thing. My characters are like my children and I'm the overprotective, paranoid mother.

**crazyasian12:** You'd be jittery too if you thought you and your loved ones were going to die in the near future. It would suck! No info on the baby yet, though. Sorry.

Thank you everyone for reviewing. They mean so much. I would have updated earlier, but I was in San Diego, California. Please review for me! They keep me going!

-HaleyJo


	25. Surprise

Author's Note: The fast update is to make up for the long time I went without updating while in San Diego. Please enjoy.  


* * *

**25. SURPRISE**

The little Lawliet family climbed awkwardly from the white car, followed soon after by Ide and Light in much more graceful manners since they weren't tangled together with anyone else. Rem hopped around on the wet ground for a while before her mother scooped her up from the pavement, making the clicking noise of her Mary Janes cease. Ide felt a bit grateful for that. The incessant clicking had been getting on his nerves, but he couldn't bring himself to bother such a tiny toddler about it. It would have felt like bullying.

"Good grief, I hate this place," Ebony sighed to herself as she hitched Rem a bit higher on her hip for a better hold. One of Rem's little feet found purchase atop her holster for better balance, lightly kicking the L keychain Ebony had had there since her attempt at college. The chains securing the holster in place rattled slightly as she walked toward the evil structure.

Ebony remembered looking up at this very building after trading herself for Misa two years ago, feeling a similar kind of sorrow in her chest at the sight of it. It had been the same night she had first kissed Lawliet and the same night that she had hugged Watari goodbye.

Her heart saddened as she thought of the old man who had been like a father to Lawliet since he was seven years old, wishing that she could hug him again. If it weren't for him, she would never have met Lawliet. But the image of Quillish Wammy's kindly face also gave her strength to finish this and finally strap the man responsible for his death to a gurney and force a lethal needle into his veins.

Such a death was still too good for him in her opinion. She thought of all the different ways that she could kill him and make it slow and infinitely painful. Being a part of the underworld had certainly given her a very vivid, very sadistic imagination.

While Lawliet could think of a hundred different ways to jail a perp in under a minute, Ebony could think of a hundred different ways to torture a perp in under a minute.

"Oh yeah, this is where you were fighting, isn't it?" Matsuda asked, his face suddenly contrite even though he wasn't at all at fault here.

"Yeah. Kinda sucks, but oh well. I knew it was the most secure place around here, which is why I suggested it," Ebony shrugged. Rem giggled in her arms and held her tiny hands out palm-up, catching the scattering raindrops falling from the overcast sky, "But that doesn't mean I have to like it."

Ebony nearly cringed as her bare feet hit the dirty floor of the warehouse, her calloused soles instantly recognizing the surface as one they despised greatly. The walk inside the warehouse was completely silent, their footsteps echoing ominously across the walls and rusty equipment that had been left behind after the raid two years ago that had finally stopped the fighting here for good. Water could be heard dripping and tricking through rusted holes in the roof, tapping against slightly flooded sections of the floor. One drop even splattered right on the end of Matsuda's nose.

Ebony appreciated it when Lawliet's long hand pressed against the small of her back, offering her silent comfort as was his way. To him, actions meant far more than words, and with good reason. His profession caused him to come into indirect contact with liar after liar after liar. Words were just never enough for him.

"Unca Near!" Rem squealed and wriggled out of her mother's arms, running to throw her arms around the masked boy's shoulders once he and the SPK were in their sight. Mogi was directly behind the hunched little white figure on the floor, his wide girth making Near seem even smaller. Rem giggled and poked Near's mask with one tiny finger, "Unca Near look like Daddy!"

Lawliet and Ebony both grinned at the mask Near was wearing. It did indeed look like L, if only a somewhat goofy-looking, cartooned version. It was a clear challenge to Light, though they were certain Light wouldn't rise to the bait. He was too smart and proud for that to work.

Pity.

"This place sure has changed," Ebony mused aloud as she looked around the large room. Her eyes stopped on the center of the floor, "Even the arena is gone," She noted as her eyes took in the square-shaped section of the stone floor that was in relatively good condition unlike the rest of the concrete, above which an arena had stood. The ring had acted as an execution ground of sorts, like the gallows or the guillotine, and they were standing at its center.

How ironic. Ebony felt that she could still hear the bloodthirsty screaming from the audience as they watched her take down fighter after fighter and booing whenever she refused to go in for the kill. She'd always gotten punished for that stunt. Less money, no clothing donations, no first aid, and other things such as that. But she had persevered in sticking to her morals regarding human life and, though they still punished her, the punishments weren't as bad after a while. They didn't want her going off to fight for some other underground warlord, many of whom had coveted her fighting skills and would have jumped at the chance to add her to their arsenal of underground warriors.

"Not necessarily, Ebony," Near contradicted her, his soft, somewhat feminine voice muffled by his plastic mask, "We are still in an arena of sorts."

"Aye, I guess so."

Seeing her discomfort born from being in this building again after finally escaping it two years ago, Lawliet reached for her little hand. He entangled it with his before stuffing both back into his jeans pocket to keep them warm. She leaned her head against his shoulder, willing to accept his support and strength when just a few years ago she'd have shifted away in suspicion and confusion. She might have even hit him for just thinking about touching her with even one fingertip.

"Why are you wearing a mask?" Matsuda suddenly asked after getting over the surprisingly small form of Near. He would never get used to learning the identities of the geniuses behind the garbled voices and intelligent vocabularies, "How is that fair? You kept talking about seeing Light face to face, but-"

"Matsuda, Near thinks I'm Kira," Light cut him off as he shrugged his shoulders, acting like he was completely understanding of the situation and how Near was approaching it, "It can't be helped."

"The mask?" Near touched it gently, "This is just insurance. There is a high possibility that the faces of everyone else here have been seen by Kira or X-Kira, but it is completely impossible that my face has been seen."

"Hm. I see," Lawliet gently rubbed circles in the back of Ebony's hand in his pocket with his thumb, "You suspect that our names have already been written down in the Death Note beforehand and are waiting to see if any of us will die. Impressive, Near. However," Lawliet watched his daughter carefully as she tinkered with the puppets Near had strewn across the floor before him, picking out their puppets immediately, "The chances of that are slim to none. Kira's personality would not allow such a covert victory. Not to mention that he certainly has not seen all of your faces."

"Either way, I plan to keep the mask on for a while longer," Near replied, adjusting said mask slightly when Rem accidentally knocked against it, "Wanting to live may sound selfish, but it is something I would like to do. I am human, after all."

Ebony giggled as she withdrew her hand from her husband's pocket and stooped to the floor. She never got tired of Near and Lawliet's ways of being politely rude. It was just too hilarious. It meant you couldn't really call them on it without making yourself sound like the asshole.

Lawliet watched his family vigilantly while they played together on the ground. Ebony had had the forethought to bring some of Rem's smaller games in her holster in order to keep her entertained during the long wait Lawliet had informed her would be happening. The sounds of his daughter's cheerful laughter were the only noises in the building aside from the creaking and squeaking of the old structure around them. And the tinkering of the light rain hitting the metal roof over their heads. Not to mentions the sounds of water leaking into the building to plop against metal and concrete echoed around them, all combining into a natural symphony.

Rem then hopped up from the floor and ran to her father, swinging her little arms around one of his legs. Just as she had at the cemetery when they had visited Watari's grave. She grinned up at him and shook his leg slightly, but he kept his balance without effort.

"Daddy, when we go home?" She asked, her smile turning to a pout, "Bored!"

Lawliet chuckled. There was no way that she could not know the meaning of the word 'bored' since he and his wife used it so many times even when they weren't bored. They always claimed each other to be.

"It will be a while yet, love," Lawliet took several long steps forward, bringing a shrieking and giggling Rem with him back to her mother, "I know this is difficult for you to do, given your high energy levels, but please try to be patient."

"'Kay, Daddy!" Rem laughed as she rolled back onto the floor, ending up with one of her feet in her mother's lap and looking up at her father upside-down, "Patent!"

"Patient, love."

"Patient!"

Halle found herself smiling softly at the sweet scene about seven or so feet from her. It was like the small family was a little ball of light struggling to be seen through the chokingly dark aura that was permeating the building. Weird as they all were, they also seemed to be the perfect family. They all truly cared for each other and never got truly angry with each other, letting misgivings go and laughing at them instead of stewing in them like most other people did.

L dying had probably instilled in both of them the reality of death, of how each minute of one's life was precious and not to be wasted. Then again, they probably knew that better than anyone else in this room, given their pasts that were riddled with deaths of the innocent and misfortune for the good.

Halle withheld a sad sigh. She knew all too well the suffering the people of the world had had to endure when Kira killed their loved ones. That was what had spurred her to the Kira case. She was going to end such suffering once and for all even if it was the last thing she did.

"Near, it's been more than 30 minutes, now, and nothing's happened," Matsuda finally protested as the near silence finally succeeded in pushing him to speak. His personality was not conducive to long periods of zero sound.

"Very well. I'll go ahead and remove the mask, then," Near complied and pulled the mask off, revealing his alabaster face and charcoal black eyes. Unlike Lawliet's gunmetal orbs, Near's truly were all black. He grinned at Light, each just as confident in his own plan as the other was.

Ebony didn't listen to a thing anyone said after that, instead fiddling with her dime earring as Rem played with her toys. She could tell that Lawliet wasn't listening either, deeming the dialogue completely pointless other than a means to waste time until Mikami arrived. Her heart thudded behind her ribcage and she flicked her dime earring between her fingers nervously, never having felt this anxious since her fighting days just after she thought her mother was dead. Even walking down the aisle at her wedding hadn't made her so nervous.

She wished that she could calm down. Lawliet had assured her that everything was going to be fine, and the man was never wrong. But still, she couldn't shake the feeling that there was something else going on here, something they had missed.

Her sharper ears alerted her to his presence before the others' mere human ears could.

"He's here," Ebony suddenly said, cutting off what someone had been saying. They heard the door creak as the person on the other side cracked it open just enough to see through it, a single dark eye darting from face to face. Gevanni and Rester were forced to pull their guns and train them on Matsuda when the man began to panic at the idea of letting X-Kira write down their names without any struggle. Near insisted that everything would be fine, though no one but two really believed him.

Light felt a grin curling his lips. The man outside, his loyal servant, Mikami Teru, continued to voice his delusional chant of 'delete, delete, delete, delete' that revealed the intense levels of his insanity. He saw Ebony curl her arms around Rem and hide her face even though she knew she was safe. She was not unaware of Mikami's abhorrence of violence, but her maternal instincts just couldn't be suppressed. It didn't matter. Only Mikami and the little girl would be left alive after this day, his gun taking care of the bare footed monstrosity kneeling on the dirty floor.

A crash suddenly sounded from outside.

Ebony let out a breath of relief, letting her forehead fall onto the top of Rem's head and giggling slightly in relief. Everyone stared at the door, hearing the sounds of a rather violent struggle and torn on what exactly to do about it. Light glanced over at Near, seeing that he seemed just as confused about what was happening as the rest of them did.

Everyone except for L and Ebony. He narrowed his sepia eyes at the former. What was going on…?

He turned back to the door when it squealed in distress from being forced open after being closed for the last two years. Light's heart nearly stopped in his chest as his throat closed up. He'd never seen the man personally before – and had certainly never expected to – but the sketch from the orphaned artist from the Wammy's House, Linda, was too accurate for him to think this was someone else. The only difference was the large burn scar marring the left side of his face and neck.

The sharp snap of breaking chocolate resounded about the room.

Mello grinned as he held his gun against the back of Mikami's head, the deadly construction of metal gleaming in the dull light from behind the clouds. Tech was knelt behind the dark haired man to cuff his murderous hands behind his back and Matt was simply grinning like always on Mello's other side. A newly lit cigarette hung from between his lips while his emerald eyes sparked triumphantly behind his goggles.

"Surprised, Near?"

* * *

Author's Note: Please don't think that I'm going all fairytale-perfect-ending on you guys. You'll be hating me very, very, _very_ soon. Trust me. Oh, and by the way, almost none of the remaining story will be following the original Death Note storyline. Everything beyond this point is mine. Mine, mine, _mine_!

**Kit-Kat Punk-lover:** It's not weird to want to kill Light. It's weird to not want to.

**Madeline Cullen:** Sorry about depressing you, but that's my job and I'm rather good at it.

**Orohippus:** Yeah. Both L and Ebony seem to keep running into walls in their lives, don't they? Kinda sucks...

**Ice Among Fire:** Near has to have the L mask! That's one of those unwritten laws people should be hanged for if they ignore it!

**Timekeeper101:** Yeah. You can't really throw cheese sauce on me through the computer. I might booby trap the screen anyway, though...

**MythCreatorWriter:** I'm glad Light's thoughts made you sick. I consider that an accomplishment as well as slightly disturbing that I can get in his head that well...Don't worry, I won't waste Skittles on Light. I'll give them to you and throw those chewable antiacids on him instead. Egh!

**SugarLandBabyGirl:** Haven't seen your name in a while. I hope you have a good holiday, too.

**xlostinmyownworldx:** I couldn't kill Tech! She's way too cool! I couldn't kill any of them. I was so sad when Matt and Mello died in the manga that I wanted to make sure they would live.

**nekosoulreaper:** I'm sad that the story is drawing to a close, too. As much fun as it is to finish a story - something I've never done, by the way - it's a bittersweet thing since they were so much fun to write. Wah!

**Stains Of Blood:** I'm so glad everyone is hating Light. That's what I was aiming for. And, yeah. I wrote the lullaby. I'm glad people liked that too. I'd been a bit nervous about it.

**Sonar:** Marry Christmas to you too!

**Me and Gaara 4ever:** Oh, don't be too mean to Mello! I like Mello! He makes things interesting.

**warning746:** Yes, I made up Ebony's lullaby. I might take you up on that idea to figure out what it sounds like and post it somewhere. I'll let you know if I do.

Thank you all for your reviews. They keep me willing to finish this thing. Endings are always the hardest parts of stories since you have to make sure everything is all tied up with a neat little bow. Please let me know what you all thought of this chapter.

-HaleyJo


	26. Flight

Author's Note: Wow, I'm updating like crazy, huh? I just feel like I owe it to you all from when I hadn't updated while in California even when I could have. See, we had no internet, otherwise I'd have posted sooner.

At any rate, here is the story of how Mello, Matt, and Tech survived. I think you'll like reading it as much as I liked writing it. I certainly hope so. Please enjoy.

* * *

**26. FLIGHT**

"_We'll have to use the smoke screen again," Matt said as he slammed on the breaks, bringing the speeding car to a sudden halt. The tires squealed in distress at their mistreatment against the cold road._

"_You don't really believe that'll get us out of this mess, do you?" Tech asked even as she cocked the smoke gun yet again._

"_Nope," Matt sighed, "But we may as well go out with a bang."_

_Tech giggled, "Indeed."_

_Together the two lovers stepped out of their red getaway car and calmly faced the Kira worshipers, each of which had a gun aimed at them. They laced their fingers together intimately and held on tight, drawing strength from each other as they accepted their mournful fate. Tech briefly considered placing herself between Matt and the guards, her clothing being more effective than the best bullet proof vest you could find. But with all the guns pointed at them, she knew that they would be filled with bullets from head to toe, making her attempt completely useless._

_So she did the only thing she could: she kept her fingers tightly entangled with Matt's, hoping it would help to ease their passing._

_Takada's guards expected the rebels to say something to save themselves. Bargain, plead, lie, anything to save their lives. Perhaps offer up information on the unknown man who kidnapped Lady Takada, or even attempt to get her back for them. Instead they said nothing, merely stood there straight and tall with their fingers linked together in an unbreakable hold. They would probably still be holding on to each other when they died. But before the guards could test that theory, they were distracted by a series of loud noises from the other side of the blockade and turned to see the source._

_A speedy white car was barreling toward them, causing the public to scream as they scrambled to get out of the way. Instead of stopping, the car slammed right into the blockade Takada's guards had created, forcing the wall of cars to part for an opening. The car's front smashed flatter than a pancake and the tires screamed against the pavement as the obviously bad or drunk or just plain crazy driver behind the wheel slammed on the breaks. The more or less totaled car brought itself to a halt just feet from the gaping couple standing by their own vehicle. The passenger door was suddenly thrown open and a small body crashed against Matt, who crashed into Tech, and forced all three of them into the red car._

"_What the hell are you waiting for?!" A mess of sugar curls moved to reveal a white face with pink and red eyes, "Floor it, you dumbass!!"_

_He did not need to be told twice. Matt quickly gathered his wits and slammed his foot onto the gas pedal while Tech and Ebony were still trying to get resituated. While it was hard to drive with Ebony's foot in his face, Matt managed to weave out of the crowd of Kira worshipers and bolt, finally able to make a clean getaway since none of the guards were able to hop into their cars fast enough to pursue them._

"_Damn, where did you learn how to drive?" Matt asked once he was composed enough to crack jokes, "I drove better than that when I was ten! Nine, even!"_

"_I've never learned," Ebony snapped back as she crawled into the back and tugged on her seatbelt, "Cars scare the bejesus out of me. I hate them. I'd rather walk. But don't be complaining," Ebony snarled, "If it weren't for me, you'd both be dead. Dead!"_

_Tech laughed, her brain finally registering that they were out of danger. They weren't going to die. She wasn't going to lose the love of her life. They were both going to live…_

"_Don't think we're not thankful, beautiful," Matt grinned at her through the rear view mirror, "I seriously thought we were going to be given' up the ghost there."_

"_You're welcome," Ebony shifted, still shaking from having to drive one of those things that she considered screaming metal death traps, "I really hope no one misses that car…"_

"_You boosted that car?!" Tech gasped in amazement before laughing again, still high on her brush with Death, "Sweet little Ebbie boosted a car! She boosted a car!!"_

"_Never knew you had it in you, sweetheart," Matt laughed as well at the crimson blush spreading over Ebony's pale face._

"_L taught me how to hotwire one. You do what you need to do in order to survive and keep your family alive," Ebony replied, one of her hands unconsciously migrating to her belly, "Your life and your family's lives. Those are the only things that matter."_

_Matt nodded in silent agreement as they pulled into an abandoned field, killing the engine so they could discuss what to do next._

"_Well, we're safe for now. Now what?" Matt looked over his shoulder at the Shinigami woman, pushing his goggles up to expose his green eyes, "They're not going to stop looking for us, you know."_

"_I know that," Ebony replied as she hopped out of the car and started rummaging around in the trunk after kicking it open in her hurry, "I also know you guys never go anywhere without disguises. You are going to put them on and find a safe place to hide out until the twenty-eighth. Preferably outside of Tokyo since the search for you will be strongest here. But not too far either. You'll need to be able to still get to the warehouses on that day at the right time in order to intercept Mikami Teru. Near's X-Kira."_

"_Got it," Tech nodded as Ebony tossed a bag to her in which they kept their various wigs and sunglasses and scarves and hats and colored contact lenses and other such things for situations such as these. It was a collection a movie make-up artist would be envious of, "What are you going to do now?"_

"_I'm going to go after Mello and Takada," Ebony replied as she stepped away from the slightly scratched up car. She reached her hands behind her and started weaving her hair into a long braid to keep it out of her way, "If L's right, Light has told her Mello's real name and instructed her to hide scraps of the Death Note in her clothing. She'll kill him the second she gets the chance."_

_Both Tech and Matt paled at this information. They hadn't thought of that…_

"_But how are you going to get to him in time?" Matt demanded, fear leaking into his tone at the knowledge that the man who was like a brother to him was in such danger._

"_I've only got one idea," Ebony confessed as she bent to place her hands on her knees, her face taking on a look of intense concentration, "If it doesn't work…I apologize in advance."_

_Matt and Tech watched as Ebony's wings started to emerge from her back, explaining why she was wearing a halter top that exposed her double shoulder blades. The young woman shivered as her wings shook out their raven feathers, coating the backs of the bony limbs. Once fully emerged, Ebony shifted her footing and looked to the sky._

"…_Have you ever flown before?" Matt asked with clear anxiety in his tone._

"…_Nope…" Ebony looked to the sky. The adrenaline that had coursed through her system before when behind the wheel of that stolen Infinity G35 Nissan came rushing back even more intensely than before. She'd never used her wings for flight before and now she was about to do so. If this had been merely an experiment, she doubted she would have been so nervous._

_But someone's _life_ was hinging on her ability to adapt to the air. She couldn't afford to mess this up, otherwise she was signing Mello's death certificate._

"_Gotta leave the nest sometime," Ebony sighed and began running._

_Ironically, they had driven to the very place where Yagami Soichiro had pretended that he was going to commit murder-suicide. She recalled how she'd known it was a mere charade by the sound of him cocking the blank. After living in the underworld for so long, Ebony knew what a real bullet being cocked sounded like, and her sharper Shinigami ears had told her that there was no real bullet in that gun. Gritting her teeth against the memories of the good man who had given his life to arrest Kira, Ebony moved her feet faster as she ran toward the river over which the overpass was built._

_At the very edge, she jumped._

_Matt and Tech stared in astonishment as Ebony beat her wings furiously in a vicious battle against the power gravity. Though in a somewhat clumsy manner, Ebony managed to stay airborne and force herself higher and higher into the air._

"_Incredible," Matt finally released the breath he hadn't been aware he'd been holding in fear that Ebony would fall back to the ground, proving to be as much a slave to gravity as any of them were. Their idol had indeed married a remarkable creature._

"_Come on," Tech tugged on his sleeve, pulling her lover from his daze as his mind automatically began calculating all the things that would be needed to keep someone of Ebony's mass airborne, "We need to set up a safe house for when Ebony brings Mello back."_

'_**If she brings him back,'**__ Matt shook those negative thoughts out of his mind as he and Tech donned their disguises and changed the license plate on the back of the car. He was soon at the wheel again, directing them out of Tokyo and to the city of __Karuizawa where they had originally planned to rendezvous._

_-oooOooo-_

_This was absolutely amazing! She had never felt anything like this before! _

_In what must have been only minutes, Ebony was already flying above the delivery truck Mello had stolen in order to throw off Takada's guards. After the first moment of her flight, she had learned how to beat her wings, how to hold her arms, and how to change direction with the minutest tilting of her body. She had been terrified that she wouldn't be able to learn this fast enough to save Mello, but now she had a chance to keep Takada from killing him. She completely disregarded the possibility – certainty – that anyone would see her. That wasn't important now. Mello's life was what was important and if it led to her exposure, then so be it. He deserved to live far more than she deserved to stay hidden._

_A sudden gust of wind pushed her back, causing her to flail in fear for a moment before she shoved her fear aside and treated this as one of her fights in the underworld. She couldn't afford to feel fear. It was a weakness. It was unnecessary. It would do nothing but bring about her demise, not to mention Mello's._

_She beat her wings harder, forcing the powerful limbs to steady her flight pattern and keep her from crashing to the concrete below her. At the velocity she was going, hitting the ground – concrete or soil or anything else – would surely result in crippling injury if not death and she just had no time for that. It would be too inconvenient to die at a moment like this._

_Ebony was enormously thankful that the highway was rather barren for the most part. Travel wasn't as common as it used to be since Kira had become law and people were afraid of what he would and wouldn't approve of. That fear served her purposes right now, though, since it meant there were fewer to see and possibly follow her out of curiosity._

_When she noticed the truck slowing down, she realized that Mello was about to pull off the highway and try to get information. If she were in Takada's position, this was exactly the moment she would have been waiting for to kill him. Killing him while he drove was pure suicide, so she had no choice but to wait for him to stop no matter how far that took her from rescue._

'_**Just wait a little longer,'**__ Ebony pleaded as she followed the truck into a crumbling church. Not much time left._

_Being careful of attracting her captor's attention, the dark haired woman in the back of the delivery truck discreetly unfolded a scrap of lined paper she had hidden in her bra. Just as Takada was adjusting her grip on the small pencil in her hand, something crashed heavily against the metal roof. She screamed as the top of the truck was suddenly dented in and then ripped open, revealing a winged figure staring down at her. The creature dropped in and quickly restrained the terrified woman's hands, stopping her just in time to keep her from killing the man behind the wheel. Takada flailed in horror, thinking that Hell must have opened up for the Devil to release one of his winged demons on her._

"_What the hell?!" Mello looked back through the small window behind him to see Ebony restraining the woman he'd just captured. Initially he was furious for her interfering with his investigation before he saw the slip of paper and the small pencil on the floor._

'_**Damn it!'**__ Mello cursed to himself, __**'She had scraps of the notebook on her!'**_

"_Takada Kiyomi," Ebony hissed at the woman, seeing the sudden recognition in her brown eyes, "You will _not_ kill him."_

"_Y-y-you! Ebony!" Takada cringed in absolute terror, her eyes darting back and forth between her face and her unfurled wings and any escape routes even though she knew there were none. Ebony's hands were ice cold from flying through the late January air, so cold that it felt like they were searing the older woman's skin, "Wh-what are you?! What do you want with me?!"_

"_I want you to make a call," Ebony replied, her crimson pupils blotting out the pink of her irises due to the dark in the back of the truck and only frightening Takada further, "You are to call Yagami Light and tell him that you have killed Mello. Tell him exactly what I tell you to, or so help me, I'll kill you here and now for all those you've already murdered. Yes, I know it's been you doing the killings," Ebony replied in answer to Takada's shocked eyes, "L already told me. Now," Ebony snatched up Takada's phone and shoved it into the woman's free hand, "Make that call."_

_Once that was done and over with, Ebony snatched up all the scraps of the Death Note and climbed back up and out of the truck, going around to the front to talk to Mello. Neither noticed Takada pick up the phone again to contact Mikami._

"_You dumbass!" She yelled at him, hitting the door with her small fist and making it rattle on its hinges, nearly knocking the window out, "You and Near _both_ are such complete arrogant, childish, unreasonable assholes, you know that?! All this miscommunication could have gotten you _killed_, not to mention Matt and Tech-"_

"_What happened?" Mello cut her off, "Are they alive?"_

"_Of course they're alive. I got there just in time," Ebony huffed at being interrupted from her tirade, "They were seconds from being gunned down by Takada's crazy guards! You nearly got them killed!"_

_Mello recoiled just enough for her to catch it and Ebony instantly felt guilty for hurting him. She knew that Mello and Matt were closer than many biological brothers were and that he would never knowingly put his friend in such danger._

"_I'm sorry," She apologized, once again throwing him with her swinging moods. Her tired wings began folding themselves into her back, weary from the sudden exertion after having never been used to support her 99 pound body, "I'm just tired and upset and scared."_

_Mello nodded before turning to look through the small window after hearing some rustling around. Ebony followed his lead, both seeing Takada stand as she held the sheet he'd given her around her naked body. Something wasn't right. Her eyes looked so…so…._

"_Shit!" Surprisingly, Mello realized what was happening before Ebony did. He dove out of the front of the truck, slinging a confused Ebony into his arms and darting out of the crumbling church as fast as his legs could carry them. He was suddenly thankful that Ebony was as little as she was, making carrying her all the easier for him._

"_Mello, what-"_

_The truck behind them suddenly exploded with flames. The heat singed the skin of her forearms which were draped about Mello's neck to be tickled by his blond hair, the ends now ragged since the Kira case took all his time. Mello nearly tripped over a piece of deteriorated wall, but managed to regain his footing to avoid sending them both to the ground. Ebony gaped at the raging flames consuming the church and the truck and thenceforth the young woman still trapped inside._

_And she suddenly knew._

'_**Yagami Light,'**__ Ebony sneered at the blaze as Mello let her down once they were in the protective cover of the nearby forest, __**'That bastard wanted to assure she wouldn't talk when in such a vulnerable state. He was planning on killing her all along, this was just a tad bit sooner than he'd expected. He didn't need her anymore, and she knew too much.'**_

"_Come on," Mello ushered her away from the blaze, letting her keep a grip on his arm since her entire body was exhausted from her flight. Her legs shook beneath her and they were going so slowly that he naturally got impatient and slung her into his arms again despite her protests. He could hear sirens in the distance and being caught by the firemen or the law enforcement was the last thing they needed right now._

_Once she was in his arms, Mello realized that she was shaking from the cold just as she was shaking from her flight. This girl was definitely an idiot, coming out to save him and his partners from Death's clutches without regards to what state it left her in._

'_**Women,'**__ Mello grunted and kept moving, eager to get as far away from that neglected citadel as possible._

_-oooOooo-_

"_MELLO!!!"_

_Mello grunted when he was suddenly squished between two very relieved geniuses the second he stepped into the hotel room. Ebony stumbled past them to collapse on the couch, her body thoroughly exhausted from all the flying she had just done. Her wings weakly unfolded from her back, draping across her tired form like a feathered blanket. She instantly felt her cold-induced shivers slowly melting away._

"_What are you guys doing?" Mello asked once he finally pried Matt and Tech off of him._

"_Oh, you'll never believe this!" Tech went back over to the coffee table upon which papers and pencils and pens and rulers and a ton of other things were strewn about. There were even a few magnifying glasses. A forger's dream kit._

"_That's Light's Death Note," Ebony mumbled weakly as she saw Tech pick up the evil tome, "How'd you get a hold of it? Didn't Mikami have it?"_

"_Yes, but check this out," Tech thrust the notebook to Ebony, who opened it to scan over the pages. Mello looked over her shoulder before his blue eyes widened._

"_The timing of the deaths skip here," Mello pointed toward the lines, "It jumps from November 25__th__ to January 26__th__ where Takada's name is written down. I thought Near's forger was tailing him."_

"_He slipped," Matt grinned proudly, taking his cigarette from his mouth to speak more clearly, "Kira's been fooling everyone for two months. Mikami's using a-"_

"_Fake," Ebony let her head fall back on the couch, "I know that. But Gevanni's supposed to be tailing him to prove that."_

"_Like I said, he slipped," Matt continued, "Mikami had the real notebook hidden in a safe deposit box at his bank and went there to kill Takada. He always goes to the bank of the 25__th__, but he went again today. I cracked the safe and found this."_

"_Cool," Ebony shifted her wings a bit to cover her more completely, "So why'd you steal it?"_

"_I'm making a copy," Tech explained as she settled down by the coffee table again, "This way, Mikami can't kill everyone at the warehouse even when he writes their names down."_

"_Sweet. He'll hang himself and Light both," Ebony reluctantly lifted herself up from the couch, trying to force her wings back in but failing, "Can someone help me, please?"_

"_Sure," Tech jumped up again and moved behind the shorter girl, helping her to fold her wings in and draw them back out of sight. Her wings utterly fascinated her and the feathers were just incredibly soft. Almost like a rabbit's fur, only a bit coarser._

"_Thank you," Ebony stood and stretched her back, making sure everything was in its place, "I gotta go. I'll see you guys on the 28__th__."_

"_Yeah. See you."

* * *

_

Author's Note: Sweet Jesus, you're all going to hate me by the end of the next chapter...

**x-X-xDarkWolfx-X-x:** I'm glad I made you do a little dance.

**Tashio:** I can neither confirm nor deny your musings.

**Orohippus:** I missed Mello when he died in the manga as well. He was a very interesting character to watch even if he was a bit sadistic, but that's what made him fun, yes?

**warning746:** Now you know how they survived. I couldn't finish this story without giving Ebony the chance to use her wings. I would have hit myself if I had.

**Madeline Cullen:** Evil psychotic bunnies loaded in a bazooka? Yeah, you've had too much sugar. Only L can consume that much sugar and caffeine and still be calm.

**LoliPear:** Thank you so much! Happy holidays to you too! Oh, and it would be totally cool to have regenerating chocolate.

**Timekeeper101:** I hope you put your jaw on ice after you dropped it so the doctors could sew it back on. I'm so glad that I'm unpredictable!

**Miyuki-ice-fox:** Six omg's. Wow.

**MythCreatorWriter:** Yeah. No fairytale endings. Those are so predictable and boring. And acid does burn you. That's why such injuries are called acid burns.

**Uzura:** I'll try to go and see your story as soon as I can. By the way, your name makes me think of an uzi. It's a 9 mm compact submachine gun. Russians use it a lot.

**SugarLandBabyGirl:** I hope this survival story worked.

**Me and Gaara 4ever:** Ha! Death hugs for Mello and Matt! Don't break their spines!

**Kit-Kat Punk-lover:** You'll soon see why I said you'll hate me.

**erina destiny:** I like more subtle love stuff too. It feels like it means more than glaringly obvious public displays of affection. I've become numb to those since hugging seems like a new teen trend I see every day at my high school. It gets pretty annoying to watch after a while.

**xlostinmyownworldx:** See? I could never kill Tech. She's way too cool to die. You are definitely much braver than me. I could never trust one of my characters to someone else. I'm too possessive.

**xxNoTimeToRegret:** I felt the other task force members needed their paragraphs of fame. It fit well to lengthen the chapter a bit.

**Lunarobi Pride:** Sorry. Can't talk about what will happen. Suspense and all that jazz.

**Sonar:** You always give me such small reviews. Wah! Oh well. Beggars can't be choosers, right?

**HikaruShedio:** Please don't hug me. I freeze up a bit when touched.

Well, that's about it. Please review for me. And as to what happens in the next chapter....**I PLEAD THE 5th!!**

-HaleyJo


	27. Shot

Author's Note: Please be kind whether I deserve it or not!

* * *

**27. SHOT**

"Unca Mello!" Rem jumped up from her spot by her mother and ran to throw her arms around the blond man's leg, rubbing her cherub cheek against the leather she encountered, "How you?"

"Mello…" Near set his puppets down as his eyes cornered to the trio in the doorway, "Matt and Tech as well. It is good to see that you aren't dead."

"Clearly," Mello held up the Death Note in his hand, shaking it slightly for emphasis and ignoring the little girl who had latched herself to his leg, "I suppose this was your plan. Replace the pages of the notebook in order to keep everyone here from dying even after their names were written down."

"Yes, it was. It seemed logical enough," Mello tossed the notebook to Near who caught it deftly with the hand not curling his hair, "Why do you ask?"

"Well, there was a serious flaw in your plan," Mello replied, feeling far more proud of himself at this moment than he ever had before. He had beaten Near. He had _finally_ won against the robotic albino boy, "Kira predicted your movements. He had Mikami here," He kicked said man over with his boot, eliciting a groan from the ashamed, fallen worshiper, "create a fake notebook to use in front of you over two months ago. Stupid of you to fall for it, actually."

"Be nice," Ebony huffed at him, though he, of course, didn't listen. She rolled her eyes at the male species' constant need to win and dominate in both physical and mental terms. So immature. It was no wonder why the human race was so screwed up with so many irrationally competitive people making up the majority of its population.

"He made the fake two months in advance," Mello continued, "He would have killed you all if Matt hadn't noticed-"

"Takada Kiyomi's name is written in here," Near interrupted him, earning an irate twitch from his rival.

Light felt like the wind had been knocked out of him. What the hell had Mikami been thinking?! He had ordered him not to make any unnecessary moves until today! None whatsoever, and not under _any_ circumstances! What the hell was _wrong_ with him?!!

"Of course it is," Mello then pulled another notebook out from under his shirt, tossing it to Near as well, "This is the _real_ notebook. You'll see the Shinigami now."

Ryuk chuckled to himself as the boy on the ground looked up slowly, his dark eyes alighting on him. Instead of panicking away from him as Light initially had the first time he saw the intimidating creature, Near kept his composure remarkably well.

"Mr. Shinigami. Nice to meet you," Near's calm was as enviable as Lawliet's, but somehow more creepy. Maybe it was because Lawliet genuinely smiled every once in a while, "I'm Near."

Ryuk laughed, "Nice to meet you. I'm Ryuk."

"Ryuk…Until today, I always believed that Shinigami had skulls for faces and carried sickles."

Both Ryuk and Ebony started laughing, the latter recalling the bone-like look of her mother that was nothing at all like the stereotype.

"Well, there are ones like that, too," Ryuk replied through his chuckles. He glanced over at Ebony for just a second, both sharing the private joke of her own appearance that had nothing to do with skulls or scythes. It was true that she was only half Shinigami, but one would still expect something more obvious other than her double shoulder blades.

"Takada Kiyomi's name is written in here to die by burning herself and everything she wrote on," Near flipped open the real notebook and the counterfeit, "Here as well. This proves that she was doing the killings by having Mikami Teru send her the names of those to be judged. Kira used Mikami as his proxy and had Mikami use Takada as _his_ proxy. This proves everything."

"You'll see that the only name out of all the people in this room that hasn't been written is," Mello cut in as his sky blue eyes slid over to the bronze haired man standing completely motionless, his deceptive eyes wide with shock, "Yagami Light."

"So it would seem," Near glanced to the counterfeit notebook, glancing over what he already knew was there out of boredom, "I must admit that I am surprised it was this easy."

"If you are referring to my death, my defense is that you all have had much more information at your fingertips than I did," Lawliet spoke up in his defense, knowing that his successors were discreetly asking him for an explanation, "Not to mention Ebony's complete trust and willingness to hand over her knowledge of the Death Note. I had neither of those the first time around. I only gained that mere days before my death."

Light stood in complete silence, his mind finally tripping over itself as it struggled to wrap around what was happening.

L and Ebony had known that Mikami's Death Note was a fake. Matt had discovered Mikami's hiding place for the real one. Mello and his cohorts had survived Takada's attempts to kill them. But how could that be so, especially after Takada had assured him that she had killed Mello? There was no way they could be immune to the Death Note, too. It was completely impossible! It was just Ebony because of her biology! Just Ebony!

_'Ebony must have gone there and forced her to tell me that she'd killed Mello,'_ Light ground his teeth together as he recalled how tired Ebony had looked after Takada's kidnapping. She hadn't been sick; she had been exhausted from tailing Mello and his partners. She had slipped out to save them and he had bought the story of her being ill since she had been just days before. How could he have fallen for such a simple ploy?!

Lawliet turned to face Light, allowing his ever wide eyes to narrow slightly. Never had he felt such hatred for another human being. Not since his sister was murdered by her father when he was just four years old. And even with that memory in his mind, his hatred for Kendall Lawliet was nothing compared to his hatred for this man.

This man who had killed Watari, Quillish Wammy, who had been his father in all the ways that counted.

This man who had killed _him_ and crushed his Ebony's heart to the point of making her cry.

This man who had threatened the wellbeing of his only daughter right to his face.

This _man_…? No, that wasn't in the least bit an accurate description….This was a _monster_ in a man's skin.

"Yagami Light," Lawliet brought one hand from his pocket and stuck the pad of his thumb against his lower lip, his teeth catching the nail. Just seeing that sickeningly familiar gesture twisted the gut of the young man he was speaking to, which was exactly why he had done it, "Kira…You are henceforth charged with…we will never be able to know exactly how many you have murdered, but we know enough to safely say that you deserve the death penalty a thousand times over."

Light's hand twitched, desperate for a pen and one of those Death Notes in his hands. This wasn't working. This wasn't supposed to happen! They were all supposed to be dead by now! Dead! They were supposed to be long gone so that he could resume his work as Kira in complete freedom!

He suddenly heard the clicking of a pair of shiny, black Mary Janes scurrying across the disgusting cement floor.

Light's eyes trailed over to the small girl running away from Mello and toward the toys she had left unattended. His observation of the child went unnoticed by those around him who were still preoccupied with digesting who he really was. Despite his long, good history with them, and despite the fact that his own father had been one of the task force members hunting down Kira, they could not help but believe L with the evidence he was presenting them with. Even _he_ wouldn't have been able to avoid doubt with so much evidence placed before him by the world renowned detective L.

_'…L…'_

Light nearly snarled. Everything was his fault. Everything! If it hadn't been for him, his father wouldn't have had to die so soon. His little sister Sayu would have never been traumatized by his crazy successor, Mello. He wouldn't have had to kill those FBI agents and Penber's fiancée, Misora Naomi. That airhead Amane Misa never would have intruded upon his life and force him to forsake the Death Note to a greedy Yotsuba employee.

And most importantly, Ebony Rose never would have gotten involved with the Kira case at all, carrying her damaging knowledge with her. She would have likely disappeared from the face of the planet in order to avoid him rather than confront him with evidence she knew would make her sound mental with no one to believe her. No one but L. That insane, insomniatic, sweets-obsessed _freak_!

_'…L….L…..L! You won't defeat me! I will not allow it! I WILL NOT!!!!!'_

"HEY!"

It was Matsuda that yelled.

Lawliet turned abruptly, seeing Light pulling the gun he had hidden on his hip under his dark grey suit coat. The metal glinted in the dull light as the rain continued to fall steadily outside, tinkering pleasantly against the metal roof. Lawliet's quick mind did the calculations and his dark eyes swiveled to the exact location where Light was pointing his loaded gun.

Something inside him caved at that moment. Lawliet's mind was suddenly filled with old memories and voices of a time he had buried long ago to retain the tenuous grip he had on the shredded remains of his sanity. The lock was broken and shattered, overwhelming his surprisingly fragile psyche and blotting out all logic. Only the most basic of human instinct remained.

He heard Billie laughing at him whenever his childish naiveté clashed with his rare genius, causing him to make many silly social faux pas.

He saw Billie smiling as she fed him during his later phases of infancy his mind allowed him to recall despite his young age.

He heard Billie sneaking into his room at night to check up on him since their mother wouldn't even look at him.

He saw Billie's gentle hands reaching out for him to untangle him from the briar patch in their backyard after Kendall had shoved him out his window, pricking her own delicate skin in the process but caring more for his injuries than hers.

He heard Billie's soothing words as she cared for him when he would tiptoe to her room at night after their parents went to bed, his newly crippled back causing him such pain that he wanted to scream in agony but never did.

He saw Billie defending him after the first time he had stood up for himself in the park, resulting in another boy cutting his forehead on the park bench from the force of his defense.

He heard Billie singing to him in an attempt to get him to sleep until she sang herself to sleep with him still awake and covering her with a blanket.

He saw Billie chasing her own friends out of their house when they had done nothing but belittle him and make fun of him despite him being their friend's baby brother.

He heard Billie's pleading orders as she picked him up and placed him in the tree by his window, her crystal blue eyes afraid and somehow protective all at the same time despite her young age.

He saw Billie's lips moving as she told him that she would meet him in the tree house once the bells stopped ringing.

He heard Billie voice the words 'I love you, L' and heard himself return the sentiment.

He saw her gravestone, saw himself bend down to embrace it and whisper a secret vow that even Watari and Ebony were unaware of. He vowed to never again ignore his instincts since doing so had cost his sister – the first person to ever care for him – her life at the age of almost ten years.

Ten was far too young to die…Less than two years was even worse….

He could hear the bells tolling inside his head, blotting out every other sound in the world. He couldn't even hear his own movements as his feet moved instinctively and his knees buckled beneath him, his lanky arms around his goal. He didn't even hear the sound of the gunshots or how they echoed off the rusty metal walls enclosing them within this dreaded meeting place.

Everything was dead silent and the first thing he heard was a tiny, fearful, confused voice next to his right ear.

"…Daddy…?"

* * *

Author's Note: Now do you all get why I said you would hate me?

**x-X-xDarkWolfx-X-x:** Was this your vague idea? If so, you're a genius.

**Me and Gaara 4ever:** Are you always on a sugar rush when you review? Your reviews are always sporadic and very funny.

**nekosoulreaper:** Yeah, Ebony boosted a car. It's a hell of a lot faster than running, isn't it?

**Orohippus:** Yeah, sometimes I wonder what the hell Ebony is thinking. I mean, really! Hotwiring a car? But it sure did the trick, didn't it?

**SugarLandBabyGirl:** Ebony hates cars, that's why she sucks at driving them. It was a good thing she was planning on crashing, though.

**xxNoTimeToRegret:** Oh, get out from under the bed! You can't read from down there!

**xlostinmyownworldx:** I am honored that you trust me so much with Tech. I'm planning an AU Death Note fic soon, and I'd like to use her there too if that's ok.

**Miyuki-ice-fox:** Ebony's wings make me jealous too. I'd love to fly! Oh, and you never need an excuse to kick Light. He might as well have a sign on his back that says 'Kick Me!'

**Madeline Cullen:** I cried when I watched Titanic, too. I cry from movies and shows all the time, but never when I hear tragedies in real life. Weird, huh? You ever seen Hotel Rwanda? Now _that's_ a tear-jerker.

**MythCreatorWriter:** Ha! Funny mental image! I'm a worrywart when it comes to fanfics too since there are so man bad ones out there.

**Stains Of Blood:** Yes. This is my fanfic! My world! I am God here! Holy shit, I pulled a Light! AAAHHH!!!!!

**Timekeeper101:** I'm glad that I'm unpredictable. It's hard for me to tell since I already know everything that's going to happen.

**erina destiny:** Was this exciting? I hope so!

**Sonar:** I'm not complaining. I give short reviews too if I don't have anything to complain about. I try to point out the good parts, though. That's always helpful when an author is told what they're doing right. Let's them know to keep doing it.

**Tashio:** Monstor's Inc. is a very good comparison to the scene with Ryuk-kun and Rem, actually. Except that Ryuk-kun didn't think that Rem could kill him.

**Sybil Corvax:** I'm glad the Wammy trio's survival makes sense. I alerted your story Untied Shoes, by the way. Awesome story. ANYONE WHO WANTS AN AWESOME LxOC STORY, GO READ UNTIED SHOES! IT'S AWESOME!!!

**Lunarobi Pride:** I am jealous of Ebony's wings too. Being able to fly would just be so cool....sigh....

**warning746:** I've always wanted to fly to school instead of walk. It would cut down on gas pollution too.

**gir4life:** Nope. Mello, Matt, and Tech don't die. No worries.

**Kit-Kat Punk-lover:** Yeah, Ebony's a bad driver. But you can't blame her! She's never learned.

Please be nice to me! I have boobytrapped my laptop so none of you can pull The Ring and crawl to get me! I'm warning you!

-HaleyJo


	28. Rage

Author's Note: Hm. Not as many death threats as I expected. I still got them, but it seems like you all trust me. That's so cool! I hope this chapter is 'good' too.

* * *

**28. RAGE**

"_LAWLIET!!!_"

It took less than a second for Ebony to be by her husband's side, her hands desperately seeking out his shoulders before he could tilt over to the dirty cement floor. Déjà vu hit her hard and fast as she leaned his head against her shoulder exactly as she had on the cold headquarters floor two years ago. His eyes were wide open from shock and pain, his chest heaving as he fought for breath. The rasping sound of his breaths traveling to and from his lungs echoed off the walls, telling everyone that he was fighting for each and every one of them.

With her left arm curled beneath his trembling body, Ebony could feel the blood from his wound seeping through her thin fingers to pool on the floor beneath them, soaking her knees with the warm liquid.

"Daddy?" Rem tried to get closer, tried to touch him, but Tech had run forward and quickly scooped the child up into her arms. Rem instantly started crying. Even through her youth, she knew that something horrible was happening to her daddy and she wanted to help him. She kept reaching for him over Tech's shoulder, her tears soiling the silvery sheer material that covered the young woman's copper skin.

"Lawliet…" Ebony lifted her free hand and brushed his long bangs from his face. He was always very pale from his reclusive behavior hiding him from the sun, but now he looked completely ashen as a pain induced sweat appeared on his brow. One of her knees bent up behind his back, helping to support his shocked body.

"R-Rem," Lawliet drew in another shuddering breath, "I-is sh-she alright?"

"_Daddy_!!" He could hear his daughter screaming for him, letting him know that she was perfectly fine. She couldn't scream like that if she was injured. How horrible that her screaming should be comforting to him at that moment.

"She's ok. She's not hurt. She's ok," Ebony gathered him closer only to do the opposite when her movement caused his breath to hitch in response to his pain, "Don't talk right now. Everything will be fine. Just don't talk now."

"K-keep her s-safe," Lawliet tightly gripped her upper arm to keep himself grounded, his strong fingers definitely promising dark bruises later on.

"You're not going to die!" Ebony said firmly even as tears slipped from her eyes. Lawliet's eyelids fluttered for just a second and Ebony shook him in desperation, "Don't close your eyes! Stay with me! You won't die! Rem would be alone!"

"…N-no," Lawliet coughed, a trickle of blood running down from the corner of his mouth, "I l-lied."

"…What?" Ebony took a few deep breaths. He had lied to her? He had lied about their lives being connected? That she would die if he did? That was a lie? Why would he do that? _Why_?

"Y-you take too m-many ri-risks," Lawliet answered her unasked question, trying to obey her command to stay awake even as his élan vital was spilling out from beneath him, "I w-wanted you s-safe."

"…I'll be mad at you later," Ebony gently stroked his face, trying to keep him awake even as her arm started tingling. His grip was cutting off her circulation, "P-please just stay with me, ok? You're not going to die. You won't die!"

"Heh…" A very small grin peeked at the edge of his lips as sirens blared in the background, signaling that Tech's frantic call of 911 had gotten through, "Y-you've alwa-ways been st-stubborn, l-love."

"Stop talking like that!" Ebony yelled at him, trying to stop her tears but knowing that was a futile effort, "You're not going to die! You're _not_! Y-you promised to stay with me! You promised!"

"…I know," Lawliet's eyes nearly closed before Ebony shook him back to awareness, "I'm s-sorry."

"No, don't apologize. It's not your fault," Ebony lowered her voice to just a whisper, her closing throat allowing little else to pass through, "It's not your fault. Please, just don't leave me again. Please just hold on a little longer. Please…"

Lawliet's breath hitched in his chest and he coughed again, staining his loose white shirt red with his blood. His breathing was ragged and sounded like when a child would trail a large stick along a chain link fence. He could hear the ambulance coming to a stop outside while Ebony gently wiped blood from his chin, but he had little hope. He didn't really feel it when he was lifted from his wife's arms and laid down on a cot, the EMTs shouting orders at each other to try to stop the bleeding and to get him on oxygen while rushing him from the warehouse.

Ebony stayed crumpled on the floor, her hand still outstretched from where her husband's had been pulled away from it. Her eyes zeroed in on that hand, seeing the crimson liquid dripping from it to the pool of blood on the floor. Her trembling hand closed into a fist, stretching her skin even whiter over the bones and ligaments, and her head tilted to face the floor.

"You want me to shoot him?" Mello asked, cocking his gun and aiming it at the psychotic man who had just shot his idol. Matt put his hand on his wrist, coaxing his friend to lower his weapon so that he wouldn't get himself in trouble.

"Ebbie," Tech laid a hesitant hand on the smaller girl's shaking shoulders, her other arm keeping a firm hold on the crying child trying to follow her father, "Ebbie, come on. It's over, we've won. Come on, it's over now."

"Yagami Light…" Ebony breathed, so low that only Tech heard her. Something was going very wrong; everyone in the room could feel it. It was like there was a vicious, dark aura roiling around the young woman on the floor, furiously coaxing her toward her darkest, evilest desires. It would be only seconds before it grew too powerful for her to contain it.

When she finally lost control, she moved far too quickly for anyone to have stopped her.

Light gagged harshly when a set of small, inhumanly strong fingers closed around his throat. He saw spots for a moment when he was flung into the nearest wall, cracking his skull against the metal and cement. His feet flailed as they tried desperately to find the floor, but it was no use. The fingers held him easily off his feet, slowly but surely cutting off his oxygen flow until it was just enough to keep him conscious and aware of what was happening around him.

Everyone who had one drew their guns in pure reflex, instantly more afraid of Ebony than Kira.

"Ebony!" Tech tried to go to her but Matt held her back, not sure of what Ebony would do when in such an enraged state.

"Heh….So this is what you really are," Light had the audacity to smirk at the creature pinning him to the wall by his throat, "A Shinigami. Rem was your weak mother, right?"

"Shut up!" Ebony screamed at him, putting more pressure on his windpipe to impede his talking. Her wings rose and stretched to their full height, terrifying everyone in the room. Ebony hissed loudly, "Killing him once wasn't enough for you. Now you had to kill him _again_?!!"

Everyone stared at the white haired woman in terrified awe. Even those who were aware of her heritage were frightened. A small bit of blood trickled down her back from how suddenly and violently her bat-like, raven feather-coated wings had ripped themselves from her back, instantly explaining the reason for the bare spot in her clothing that had confused everyone before.

But what was truly frightening was the new changes. The frail little nails that had previously tipped her thin fingers had lengthened and tapered into deadly talons. Her canines were sharpened and slipped over her full bottom lip in a fearsome grimace. The crimson of her pupils bled over to coat over the whites of her eyes, slit black pupils seeping up from the pool of red.

"Ebony, stop it!" Tech kept trying to struggle out of her love's arms but he wouldn't let her. The only reason he succeeded was because she still held a crying Rem in her arms, "L's not dead yet! Don't give up on him! You can't kill Light! You'll go to jail, Ebony! Think about Rem! Ebony!!"

Ebony stared at the hand she had clamped around Light's throat, willing it to close and snap his neck right in half. It would be easy, so very easy, like breaking a toothpick. Her blood red, cat-slit eyes roamed over his face, seeking out the places where she could end his life in not even a second. She also found each and every one of the places that would make him suffer. She ground her teeth together, trying to get herself to move to end his pathetic life.

'_Tech is right. You can't do this.'_

'_But he deserves to die! He has to die!'_

'_Don't let Lawliet's sacrifice go to waste!'_

'_He would want me to kill him!'_

'_He would want you to be there for Rem! He wouldn't want your baby delivered in prison! _His_ baby! Don't do this to him!'_

'_But Light has to die.'_

'_He will later, but not by your hand. That would mean that he wins.'_

'…_But he deserves to die…'_

'_You've gone your whole life without killing anyone. Don't change that now. He's not worth it!'_

'……'

Ebony screamed at the top of her lungs and brought her free hand forward.

"EBONY, _NO!!!_"

Light panted heavily, his red-brown eyes shifting to the left side of his head. Ebony's lethal talons were embedded deeply into the metal of the wall down to her scarred knuckles. Her blood red eyes were screwed shut, telling him that it had taken every ounce of her control to not shove those talons through his brain. Her chilling scream still rang in everyone's ears, a sound no human could ever make.

"You have Lawliet to thank for me missing your face," Ebony growled, an inhuman, terrifying hiss lacing her words. She then ripped the man away from the wall and flung him across the room until he slammed into the opposite wall. The pained moan told her that he wasn't dead, but she didn't care. Her goal had been to ensure that he wasn't about to be going anywhere anytime soon.

Ebony tore her claws from the wall, straining to force her Shinigami traits back. It was hard since she had never shifted this drastically before. She hadn't even known that she _could_ shift this far. The feathers on her wings rose like a cat's hackles as they struggled to hide themselves again, made nearly impossible by her enraged state. Her claws slowly and fangs withdrew and dulled and when she opened her eyes again, they had returned to their normal appearance. She dropped to her knees once her wings were finally gone, her entire body shaking like a rattlesnake's tail from the effort of fighting her intense desire to kill.

"Ebony…"

"Don't touch me," Ebony's voice was rough from her screaming and trying to keep herself under control. She looked up at Tech and somehow managed to feel guilty for the fear she saw in her face, "I might hurt you."

Ebony stood on shaky knees and started stumbling toward the door. Soon enough her legs regained their strength and she sprinted toward the ambulance. She panicked as she saw that they were closing the doors.

"STOP!" The medics paused at her yell and blindly backed out of the way as the white haired woman leapt into the vehicle, scooting up to the injured man on their gurney.

"Miss, you can't-"

"He's my husband, you moron!" Ebony yelled at the man, for once not caring about being polite as her love's life was slipping away right in front of her eyes.

"I'm sorry," He apologized hastily and got back to his job, not having time to marvel over the union of two such seemingly opposite people.

Lawliet was staring up at the ceiling of the ambulance through half-open eyes, seemingly unresponsive to the hasty activity going on around him. His short, ragged breaths fogged the oxygen mask over his nose and mouth, the only thing that was letting them know he was still alive. A few drops of blood flecked the inside from when he must have coughed after the mask was put on. His thin chest barely moved aside from the occasional jerk when his breath caught in his throat. Ebony tightly gripped Lawliet's long hand, terrified of how cold it was, as the medics cut away his bloodstained white shirt. She rubbed circles in the back of his hand and pressed his fingertips against her trembling mouth. It seemed to rouse him from whatever had captivated him before and his eyes sluggishly moved to hers. It amazed her that he was still coherent enough to recognize her while he was possibly dying. He weakly stroked her lips with his cold fingertips, trying to comfort her even though he was the one on the gurney.

"…E…Eb-bony…"

"Shush," Ebony began stroking his ink black hair away from his sweating forehead, paying no heed to the tears spilling from her eyes, "It's ok. Don't talk now. We're on our way to the hospital right now. You're going to be fine. I promise."

"Huh…" Lawliet watched the tears rolling down her face, loathing each and every one as they dripped from her chin to splash against the floor of the ambulance. As much as it killed him to watch her crying, to feel her lips trembling and watch her nose reddening and her eyes squinting against her tears, she still looked beautiful to him even at her worst moment, "Y-You're bleeding…."

"Sorry," Ebony had forgotten that her hair would have blood on it, "Wings came out too fast."

"…You killed him?"

"….No," Ebony shook her head, feeling ashamed, "I wanted to, but I couldn't do it. I'm so sorry."

"N-no. Don't be," Lawliet stroked her lips with his shaking thumb, "…R-Rem needs you…"

"Sh-she needs you, too," Ebony kissed each of his fingertips, holding on to his hand even tighter. She acknowledged nothing of what the medics were doing as the van drove to the nearest hospital – the Ibaraki Hospital where both she and Soichiro had gone to during this case, "Please stay with me, Lawliet. Please…"

Lawliet didn't answer her. He couldn't. While lying had always come easily to him even when he was still very young, he found that he couldn't lie to his love now. He wasn't sure if he was going to survive. He knew that his wound was serious. How serious, he wasn't sure, but he knew that the possibilities of him dying were going up and up and up with every passing moment. Nevertheless, he wanted nothing more than to calm the young woman crying over him. He wanted to see her smiling and laughing and free of such fear and horror.

He wanted….to……

"Lawliet?" Ebony shook his hand as his fading gunmetal eyes slid shut, "Lawliet?!"

The monitor beside him stuttered and then ran flat.

Ebony was hastily shoved away to a corner of the ambulance so the medics could respond to the emergency. A defibrillator was taken out and hooked up to work as one of the medics performed CPR, getting his heart to start erratically pulsating again. Then the defibrillator paddles were applied to his narrow chest. Ebony bit down on her bottom lip.

"200. Clear!"

Ebony flinched as Lawliet's body jerked from the electrical shock that had just been forced through him. The monitor fluttered for just a second before it flat lined again. Another bout of CPR was applied until the defibrillator was charged up again.

"300. Clear!"

A dry sob was wrenched from Ebony's throat as Lawliet's thin body jerked again. She curled up in her spot and grabbed her head between her hands, tightly gripping her hair as she started to rock back and forth. She tasted her own tears as they fell to the corners of her trembling mouth. Her head turned away even as her eyes stayed fastened on his motionless form, unable to look away for even a second.

The monitor quivered again before the flat line continued.

"360. Clear!"

* * *

Author's Note: Not really sure of what to say here other than hang in there.

**Orohippus:** I dare to make a cliffy there because I am an arrogant bitch who loves tormenting her readers. And I am not going to go die because then I can't finish this story.

**Timekeeper101:** If you were in shock from the last chapter, does this mean that this one killed you?

**x-X-xDarkWolfx-X-x:** You are in shock as well. Did I kill you too?

**MythCreatorWriter:** Yeah. With love and family, you always get the self-sacrificing thing. Kind of ironic, huh? That apparently runs in the Lawliet family.

**Stains Of Blood:** Yes, Light is one evil fucker, and I don't drop the f-bomb very often. About therapy for Rem, that depends on the therapist. I was in therapy once, and my therapist sucked.

**gir4life:** No! Rem doesn't die! Read the story!

**Me and Gaara 4ever:** My cliffhangers will be flipping you off once again here. Merry Christmas to you, too!

**SugarLandBabyGirl:** You'll get irritated with me for this cliffy too. In my opinion, this one is even worse. Even I almost hate it.

**Mel1983:** Light didn't shoot Rem! Three of you thought he shot Rem. No. Light shot Lawliet by mistake. And I don't use the 780 day rule because the characters don't know of its existence. And I'm not mad about you not reviewing every chapter. Just reviewing every once in a while is good enough for me since I know you're busy with your stories too.

**Miyuki-ice-fox:** You can kick Light freely at any time. Oh, do you really have an L plushie? If you do, then I'm jealous.

**Magpie-chan:** Do I even _want_ to know what *"%~)/} means?

**xxNoTimeToRegret:** Yeah, tragedy makes a good story. I'm glad you don't hate me, so don't start hating me now!

**nekosoulreaper:** As I said to the others: no, Rem isn't hurt. She's fine aside from possibly traumatized.

**warning746:** I made Lawliet get shot because he needed a turn on the gurney. First it was Ebony after her fighting, now it's L after his own fight. Rem saying "Daddy?" right at the end killed me too. This one is even worse.

**Madeline Cullen:** I think they have pills for twitching. Hell, they have pills for everything these days. I would be afraid of "Red Pyramid" if I knew what the hell it is.

**Sybil Corvax:** I'm glad you like my story so much. By the way, Geof is hilarious!

Please review for me and have a Merry Christmas and a Happy Hanukah and whatever else you celebrate right now!

-HaleyJo


	29. What Life Is

Author's Note: A filler-ish chapter, I think. I hope you all enjoy it.  


* * *

**29. WHAT LIFE IS**

_Lawliet was more than a little amused as he watched Ebony's knees bouncing up and down just seconds after folding themselves Indian-style. Her right hand was flicking her dime earring back and forth and her left fiddled incessantly with the hem of her black dress. Back when making the flight arrangements with Roger, Lawliet had suspected that Ebony would be very uncomfortable with planes considering how she was uncomfortable just being in automobiles. It seemed that his deductions on her comfort level with flight were proven true once again. It was understandable since her feet had been in direct contact with a stable surface – which an international airplane most certainly was not – for the majority of her life. But that didn't make it any less funny to him._

"_Try to calm down, love," Lawliet reached over and brushed the backs of his fingers against her pale cheek, "We are perfectly safe."_

"_I know that," Ebony continued bouncing in her seat like a small child, her voice pitched a bit higher than normal due to her anxiety, "But fears are irrational, Ryuzaki."_

_He noted her slight frown and chuckled slightly. Ever since learning his real name, she had developed an even more intense disliking to using his aliases. She'd told him that she liked his real name a lot more than any of his aliases. She said it was very unique and she liked unique things. He admitted that he too preferred hearing his real name rolling off her tongue, but discretion was something they desperately needed right now since they were both supposedly dead. Even though she was immune to the Death Note and stood out like a sore thumb, he called her by her middle name, Rose. _

_You could never be too careful._

"_This is true," Lawliet took one hand from his knee and wrapped his arm around her waist, affectionately squeezing her hip, "However, since I refuse for anything to happen to you even when thousands of feet above sea level, you are thenceforth 100 percent safe."_

_Ebony giggled nervously at her fiancé's inexorable if somewhat irrational confidence. She lifted the armrest between their seats and cuddled against him, finding comfort in something sturdy to lean upon. Her arms wrapped around his narrow waist and she was all but sitting in his lap. Lawliet allowed himself to be a pillar for her at the moment, finding this new, anxiously silly side of her completely endearing._

_----_

_Lawliet enjoyed the sound of his new wife's laughter as he spun her around, her simple yet lovely white wedding dress twirling about her pretty legs before he pulled her close to him again. She looked like a celestial being in that pearly gown, her hair cascading in perfect curls of sugar down her mostly bare back that one of his long hands was splayed against to feel the warmth of the soft white skin that covered her. The exposure of her double shoulder blades was completely ignored at that moment since everyone present knew what she was. Her soft pink eyes seemed to be glowing in her face and her happiness infected everyone in the room, himself included._

_The entirety of the Wammy's House was in full swing of the celebration of the great detective L getting married. It seemed like such an impossibility given the lifestyle that anyone who was L was fated to live, so everyone was thrilled for the good fortune they believed he more than deserved. He had been congratulated dozens of times already and a few of the adults who had helped to look after him during his troubled, lonely childhood actually thanked Ebony for coming into his life. Said woman would simply blush and stutter for words for a second before hiding her embarrassment in her new husband's slumped shoulder, causing those around her to laugh at her charming modesty._

"_I love you," Lawliet smiled at the whispered avowal that caressed his ear and sent a glow of warmth coursing through his system. He kissed her cheek and reached to curl her hair around his fingers, resting his forehead against hers._

"_Oi," Matt suddenly nudged against his shoulder, mischief in his green eyes that were for once absent of his yellow-tinted goggles. Tech was in an ice blue dress that hugged her curves nicely and matched the tips of her hair. She grinned from her place entangled happily in her lover's arms as they paused their dance to tease, "Save that for behind a locked door, you lovebirds. There are minors present!"_

_Ebony giggled at his words, dropping her forehead onto Lawliet's shoulder and seeming thankful for Matt reminding them that they had an audience. Lawliet sighed and rubbed his thumb over the wedding ring that now adorned Ebony's left ring finger, a symbol of her everlasting devotion to him. While it was true that they'd only known each other for under a year, he had never been more sure about anything since his decision to become known as the super detective L. He loved this mortal goddess in his arms and he knew that he had somehow garnered her love in return._

"_Though I am loath to admit it, it seems that he has a point," Lawliet whispered in her ear, unable to mask the excitement in his voice, "We should listen to him rather soon, don't you agree?"_

"_You're a doof," Ebony replied with an equally excited giggle and a flushed face. Even though they'd been intimate before, it was a tradition to consummate one's marriage once dusk hit. Though both of them were pretty bizarre individuals, who were they to break with tradition? Especially such an enjoyable tradition?_

_-----_

_Lawliet gently stroked Ebony's long hair, chuckling at the pout she was wearing as she rubbed her upper right arm. Seeing as how Ebony had been more or less on the streets since her early childhood, she had never gotten the many vaccines most children did during their first eight or so years of life. At this realization, Lawliet had insisted that she get vaccinated immediately._

_Ebony had protested since she absolutely hated needles. Lawliet had had to calm her down at the hospital after her fighting days were over before she would let them give her a simple IV. Ebony had insisted that the vaccines were completely unnecessary, certain that her Shinigami blood would protect her from any silly human illnesses. But Lawliet being Lawliet, he had reminded her of the time back before her confinement when she'd gotten so sick that she was bedridden for a week. He also reminded her that she was six weeks pregnant and needed to be as healthy as possible for both herself and their baby._

_So, after much childish sulking and whining despite the high levels of maturity that she usually portrayed, one of the Wammy's House's caregivers had driven them to the doctor's office in order for her to get her vaccinations. She still had several more to go since she obviously couldn't get all the vaccines she needed all at once due to health concerns from clashing medicines. Her arms were beginning to get slightly bruised from all the needles._

"_Stupid shots," Ebony mumbled, her knees bouncing up and down in agitation, "There's no way every one of those is necessary."_

_Lawliet chuckled to himself, his grin only widening when Ebony turned her glare on him. She just looked so adorable when she was irritated that he was never as intimidated as he probably should be. Beside, she never really got mad at him. She almost never got truly angry with anybody. It just wasn't in her nature to hold grudges._

"_And it's your fault!" Ebony punched him in the arm, "You love me and yet you keep bringing me to a torture facility to get stuck full of needles!"_

"_It is _because_ I love you that I keep bringing you to a torture facility to get stuck full of needles," Lawliet replied smoothly, leaning in to kiss her ear and grinning because of the sudden redness of her cheeks._

"_Arrogant twit," Ebony stuck her tongue out at him and Lawliet just kept smiling, gently nuzzling her ear in contentment. He dug his long fingers into her sugar locks, easily smoothing her bad mood away like it had never been there to begin with. He kissed the corner of her jaw, feeling her shoulders fully relax in response to his little affections when she would have possibly attacked him for them just eight months ago._

_Had they really only known each other for eight months? Lawliet felt like he'd known her forever. He had never imagined that he would find someone with whom he would want to share his life. It was like someone had taken pity on him for whatever reason and decided to create this beautiful creature to love him and to be loved by him._

_He would always be thankful for this wondrous being and refused to let something so silly as an illness steal her away from him after they had just survived the worst serial killer in the history of mankind._

_------_

_Lawliet grinned as he watched Ebony playing with some of the younger children of Wammy's, digressing into a child right before his eyes. The children found her fascinating, especially how she moved more like an animal at times, crawling around on her hands and toes without the aid of her knees like an oversized gecko. The girls always wanted to play with her curly white hair, braiding it and pinning it up in some of the most ridiculous hairstyles that Tech had insisted they photograph. Ebony always wholeheartedly agreed, being one of the few people who could truly laugh at themselves. Much to her husband's amusement, it was quite obvious that more than a few of the small boys had formed silly crushes on her. They often craved her attention and blushed whenever she ruffled their hair or praised them on their successes. _

_Lawliet couldn't blame them. She was a very entertaining person even if she didn't realize it, which just made her even more entertaining._

"_L!" Ebony suddenly jumped up to the doorway he was standing in and grasped his long hands in hers, "Come play with us!"_

_Unable to resist the pleading of his wife and the many children that had suddenly surrounded his long legs, Lawliet had no choice but to be quite literally dragged into whatever game it was that they had been playing. While he would have refused without another thought at the beginning of this year, he found that he could not deny anything his wife desired of him._

_Besides, it meant that she would have to make it up to him later._

_----_

_Ebony giggled suddenly and placed her hands on her swelling abdomen, squirming slightly as the child inside kicked against the walls of her womb. Lawliet couldn't help but smile at her, something he had been doing more and more of since she stumbled into his life by means of the Kira investigation._

_While he'd never understood it before, or even bothered to understand it, Lawliet now knew perfectly well why the term 'glowing' was so often applied to pregnant women. He too felt that it was the only term that did Ebony's current state justice. Her normally pale cheeks were almost constantly flushed a healthy rose and her eyes had softened from the cold steel of a brutally trained fighter to the soft warmth of a tender and loving mother-to-be. He enjoyed the fact that her pregnancy refused to allow her to wear her black leggings, leaving her snowy legs bare from the dresses she always wore to accommodate herself and their baby._

_Lawliet crawled up behind her where she sat on the edge of their bed and reached around her narrow shoulders. He pressed his hand to her belly, splaying his long fingers over the little home it currently was. His dark eyes cornered to the side when Ebony leaned her head back against his slumped shoulder, being humbled and honored by her smile so full of love and affection that was all reserved for him._

_They had decided not to ask whether the baby was a boy or a girl, preferring instead to be surprised. Lawliet was still amazed that Ebony's stomach was as small as it was since he had seen pregnant women before. Most of them had far bigger baby bumps than she did, and he knew it concerned their doctor somewhat considering she was already almost seven months along. But he was trying not to worry too much. Ebony certainly ate enough, seemingly constantly regardless of wherever the food disappeared to. She showed no signs that either she or the baby were in any distress, so he held his smile in place to keep her content and happy._

_It was the least he could do for her after she had brightened his dark life. He'd never known such a light could exist in the world, especially in his world._

"_I love you, Ebony Rose," Lawliet gently kissed her smiling lips before nuzzling her neck affectionately. He felt her pulling her little fingers through his unruly hair. She kissed his forehead and returned the endearment, interrupted by yet another kick from the baby that Lawliet felt this time through his palm and fingers._

_----_

_Ebony lay almost completely still in the hospital cot as people rushed about her, trying to get her ready for delivery. Her water had broken in the middle of the kitchen at Wammy's some eleven or so hours ago – greatly startling several children – and she hadn't been talking much since then. While Lawliet knew that Ebony was the kind of person to for lack of a better term, separate herself from reality when in serious pain, his wife's silence was still making him mentally panic. He was trying to let her deal with the pain in her own way, but he couldn't stop himself from occasionally poking her shoulder or tugging on one of her fingers just to make sure she was really still with him._

"_You are certain that you're alright?" Lawliet asked yet again. He had his chin resting against the edge of her pillow so that he could speak directly into her ear, making it easier for her to hear him over the hustle and bustle of the doctors and nurses._

"…_Yes," She breathed after a short silence that had shot his anxiety up a good dozen notches before they lowered again, "I've had worse."_

"_Yes. I apologize for asking again," Lawliet felt her groping for his hand and quickly granted her wish to entangle their fingers together. He knew whenever a contraction hit because she would wince slightly and her grip would cut off the circulation to his fingers momentarily until she relaxed again enough to loosen her hold._

"_Keep talking," Ebony said faintly after a contraction had passed and she closed her eyes, "Your voice helps."_

"_Talking has never been my forte," Lawliet replied, wracking his brain for any subject that might be of interest to her and blurting out his thoughts as he did so. For a genius, he sure felt completely incompetent at that moment. He untangled his fingers from hers and placed them on her swollen abdomen, still marveling over how small she was even though she was housing a baby in there, though not for much longer._

_He then smiled._

"_Do you remember our first time together?" Lawliet asked, seeing her lips twitch slightly in an attempt to grin, "In the hotel before we left for England?"_

"_How could I forget?" Ebony finally smiled though her eyes remained closed. He couldn't be sure since her face was flushed already, but she might have blushed, "You kept staring."_

"_Despite your thoughts on the matter, you are incredibly beautiful, so you should have expected that," Lawliet gently rubbed her abdomen when she winced from another contraction, "Would you believe me if I told you that I was terrified of you at that moment?"_

"_Terrified…?" Ebony frowned and cracked her eyes open, slowly moving them toward his face, "Why?"_

"_Again, your beauty had stunned me," He elaborated as her contraction passed, "I was horrified that I would do something wrong, possibly cause you pain rather than pleasure. I wanted that night to be something you would remember forever, but I wasn't at all certain of how to go about it."_

_Ebony's lips relaxed and her brow smoothed out again as she listened, recalling how scared she had been as well. It had probably been worse for Lawliet since he knew that he would be causing her some pain no matter what. Her hymen had been destroyed long before then from being thrown around the ring in the criminal underworld, but she had still been forced to stretch. Lawliet's worry had also come from being in a situation that he hadn't already planned out beforehand minute by minute, as was his way._

_Despite the bit of pain she had barely even noticed, that had been one of the most amazing nights of her life._

"_I didn't realize what that night would give me. I never even considered it," Lawliet continued, making the doctors uneasy with how he stared at them unrelentingly as they helped Ebony to spread her legs and bend her knees. It was like he was daring them to make even a miniscule error and promising an exceedingly painful demise if they did, "It has sounded increasingly nice since then, though."_

"_Good," Ebony turned her head to face him, her voice sounding a bit strangled as her contractions began hitting faster, "Which do you think it'll be?"_

_Lawliet thought for a moment, lifting his hand to brush over her flushed cheek._

"_It will be a girl," He said confidently, gently tapping the end of her nose._

_Conversation ceased then, for the time had finally arrived. Ebony held onto his hand tightly, her other harshly gripping the metal bar on the side of the slightly raised cot. Lawliet had to remind her to breathe several times since her breathing was far too shallow to keep her conscious during this amount of pain. To the amazement of the doctors and nurses, Ebony never once screamed. She whimpered every now and then, but not even her worst contractions could force any louder sounds from her lips. _

_Lawliet expected nothing less. He actually would have been surprised if she had screamed, even if only once. He stayed silent with her, offering her silent support as he held her hand and caressed her face. She had turned to face him and he rested his forehead against hers, occasionally kissing her cheek or nose. Her eyes were shut and Lawliet kept his fastened on her face, having to continuously remind himself that this was all a normal part of the birthing process. He could hear the metal bar on the cot bending under Ebony's ever tightening grip._

_Then there was crying._

_Ebony went limp, her eyes cracking open to slits as she panted and listened to the sound of a baby crying. Her eyes cornered over to Lawliet, watching the open nervousness in his face as a little pink bundle was placed into his very tentative arms. He looked absolutely adorable._

"_It seems your husband was right, Mrs. Lawliet. It's a girl," Ebony smiled at the doctor's words, finding them silly since the pink blankets clearly stated the baby's gender._

"_Rem," She breathed, faintly giggling at the continued anxiousness Lawliet kept portraying as he stared almost fearfully at the squirming bundle in his arms. He looked so completely, absolutely, utterly _cute_, "Mind her head."_

_Lawliet obeyed immediately, carefully curling his long fingers behind the little baby's head. She immediately stopped fussing so much, the little cringe on her cherub face relaxing. As though checking to see if what he was holding in his hands was what he saw with his eyes, Lawliet reached a long finger forward and touched her cheek, seeming startled that he'd actually been able to touch her. The touch turned to a short caress, his fingertip marveling over the impossible softness of a baby's flesh._

_The sweetest grin she'd ever seen suddenly spread across her lover's face, transforming his entire visage. She noticed a couple of the nurses staring in shock and some shame as the smile revealed the handsome, surprisingly loving man that was hidden behind an expressionless mask that worked too well. She knew that all of them had thought he looked like a freak until they saw that smile._

_Still, it was shocking to even her when a couple crystal tears rolled slowly down his pale face. Her husband never cried…_

"_Rem," Lawliet tried the name out, finding that it fit perfectly when the tiny girl opened her eyes, revealing them to be a carbon copy set of her mother's. The unidentifiable but undoubtedly good feeling in his chest grew when Rem's tiny fingers curled around the one he had against her cheek like she already knew it was her father that was holding her, "Rem Quillish Lawliet. Welcome to the world."_

_Ebony's weak smile grew as Lawliet adjusted his grip on their daughter, relaxing into a long-buried paternal mindset. His thumb glided over Rem's rosy cheek since she still had a hold on his index finger. He could have easily broken her grip, but he would never do so willingly._

"_And you were worried about if you would make a good father," Ebony smiled at the tiny bit of pink that stained his cheeks from her words. She shifted to sit up weakly and held out her arms. Though reluctant, Lawliet passed the tiny child over to her exhausted mother. Ebony cradled the baby easily in her arms, remembering how Ikina Rin, the counselor from her high school, had let her hold her little baby, Sachiko. _

_That seemed like several lifetimes ago now. Who would have thought that she would one day be holding her own little girl in her arms?_

_Lawliet stared at his wife and daughter before resting his chin on her pillow again. He wiped the few tears from his face before reaching over the stroke Rem's cheek again while she rested comfortably in her mother's arms. He couldn't believe it. He was a _father_. Another human being – well, _mostly_ human – was dependant on him for survival._

_He was a father…_

_-----_

_Lawliet gently ran his fingers through his wife's soft hair as she nursed their daughter, gently cooing to her as she did so. It was only through motherhood that anyone really realized that a woman's breasts actually served a purpose other than attracting a mate, which was their most often publicized purpose._

"_She's got your hair," Ebony commented absently, resting her head against his shoulder. Lawliet smiled, looking at the thick, shaggy black hair that had eventually grown on their daughter's head. _

_Their baby had taken appearances from both of them. From Ebony, little Rem Quillish had been given her mother's unique eyes of coral pink irises and crimson red pupils. She had her mother's white skin and pretty smiles. From Lawliet, she had his thick midnight hair and abnormally large eyes. Some of her facial features were clearly from him and she had his bad habit of perpetual staring._

_Lawliet had never felt so content in his life. He had an adoring, faithful wife and a beautiful, happy little girl to love and care for. He would be spending the rest of his life devoted to the both of them and he knew that he would enjoy every second of it._

_Lawliet didn't expect their lives to be perfect, though, and he knew they could only wait so long before acknowledging the reality of Kira again. But for now, just for these precious moments, he could pretend that Kira did not exist and devote all his time and attention to his wife and daughter._

_There was absolutely nothing in the world that he would rather be doing._

"_Lawliet?"_

_Lawliet glanced over, frowning as he registered the upset look on his wife's face._

"_Lawliet?!"_

_He tried to respond, tell her that he was ok, that he was here, but he couldn't talk for some reason._

"_Lawliet!!"_

-oooOooo-

"He's back! We need to hurry!"

Lawliet's dark eyes fluttered open, curious as to what had happened before realizing that he had died for a short moment. He supposed that the phrase of one's life flashing before their eyes as Death came rushing for them actually had some merit.

It was so very wrong in other ways, though. The only parts of his life that had replayed for him again had been the parts that had Ebony with him. It showed him that his life hadn't really been a life at all until she had wandered into it. Cases and mysteries, felons and victims, crimes and justice, none of that had repeated itself while his eyes had been closed. While it could be seen as noble, fulfilling work, jailing criminals and giving the victims and those left behind a sense of closure had all been so empty somehow. He had lost most of his passion for it not long after he took on the persona of 'L'.

Lawliet was fully aware that his passion for justice had come from having seen human cruelty in some of its most disgusting forms firsthand. It had come both from being a victim himself, and being one of those left behind after the crime had passed him over, left alone to stitch up deep wounds with incapable hands. After a while, he had truly become 'L', leaving L Lawliet behind in something of a deep sleep, unable to reconcile with having his only loved one stolen away. His passion had swiftly become his prison and his safety net, locking him away from all human contact while preserving the few shreds of sanity he had managed to retain over his life. He had pursued his obsession merely because he felt it was his duty, his purpose in life. He'd had no other option.

But then Ebony had walked into his life with cake and a smile and began the tedious, careful work of picking the complex locks around his mind and heart. It was hard work, to be sure, considering he hadn't opened up to anyone since he was less than five years old. Even Watari hadn't been privy to things that he had willingly showed to Ebony, such as the night his sister died. He had never really spoken of it, not even once, until Ebony had asked him.

But the really funny thing was that Ebony hadn't even _tried_ to entwine her fingers into his heart and mind, she just _did_. Everything she was had drawn him in and distracted him to the point that once he realized just how deeply she had crawled beneath his shell, it was far too late to try to force her out.

And by then he hadn't wanted to. If anything, he had dragged her in even deeper.

Lawliet blinked sluggishly. He couldn't get his eyes to focus properly. Everything around him was fuzzy and smudged beyond recognition. His sense of hearing wasn't much better, all the sounds blurring together into one dull, jumbled hum. His eyes drooped shut again as his strength waned, his raspy breathing very shallow and weak. The only comfort he felt was from the sensation of a set of small, calloused, trembling fingers grasping one of his own.

The sensation of those small but strong hands was what he carried with him as blackness encroached upon his psyche.

* * *

Author's Note: So how was it? Cliffy-ish, I suppose, but I just love those things. I can't help it.

**Me and Gaara 4ever:** Are you cursing at me or the cliffhangers? I can't tell.

**SugarLandBabyGirl:** Like I said, I can't help but use cliffhangers. They're just so useful.

**xxNoTimeToRegret:** I made you cry? Cool!

**nekosoulreaper:** Yeah. A bullet to Light's brain would have been good, but not nearly as interesting, I think.

**Tashio:** Thank you! Being called evil is an awesome compliment. And Ebony can't die with Lawliet. If you read it, you'd see that Lawliet lied about it.

**Madeline Cullen:** "Red Pyramid" sounds pretty bad. Please don't sic it on me. I wouldn't be able to finish the story.

**Orohippus:** You're crying too? Cool!

**Mel1983:** Yeah, I'm still a young writer. Not even seventeen yet. It's cool to be told my writing is good.

**Miyuki-ice-fox:** Aw, I'm sorry. And have fun going after Light with that rusty butter knife.

**MythCreatorWriter:** I'll get a picture of Ebony all Shinigami-ish once I finish the one of her and Shinigami Rem. It's coming along pretty well so far.

**Timekeeper101:** Oh, good. I don't want you to die until you can read the ending. That would suck. Oh, and you gave me a new vocab word. Tentherhooks. Never heard of it before, but now I'll use it one day.

**xlostinmyownworldx:** Thank you! I will be true to her in my next story too! You have my word!

**x-X-xDarkWolfx-X-x:** Don't leave the 'or else' to my imagination. I can make it so I am showered with Reese's and Kit-Kats and Cookies n' Creme bars.

**Kit-Kat Punk-lover:** Sorry. Bribes don't work on me either. I would never be able to look myself in the mirror again if I let other people influence my stories.

Have a merry Christmas everybody! And please review!

-HaleyJo


	30. Blackout

Author's Note: I think this chapter is going to end with you all loving me and hating me. Oh, well. Can't please everyone.

* * *

**30. BLACKOUT**

Ebony sat completely motionless in one of the sparsely padded waiting room chairs, her legs folded Indian-style as usual. But instead of the usual fidgeting that her fingers were usually engaged in, whether the object of absentminded play be her dime earring or a stray curl, her hands lay completely limp in her lap. Her neck didn't seem to want to exert the effort in holding her head up, so her face was left tilted to the white floor. Her eyes were locked on something she wasn't really looking at and her white face was completely blank. She almost looked tired, which she surely was, but fatigue wasn't what kept her still.

Whenever she was under an extreme amount of stress, Ebony would always completely withdraw into herself. It didn't matter whether the stress be mental or physical, or whether the trauma be upon her or someone else. It was something she had done since…birth, really. She didn't move, she didn't speak, she barely even _breathed_. She simply became a living doll, a marionette that had had her strings cut. The response had always upset her mother while she helped her wrap up her post-fight injuries.

A sudden shiver ran across her shoulders and down her spine and she didn't bother to fight it as another set of tears spilled over from her lower lids. They trickled leisurely down her pallid cheeks – trauma robbing them of any color – to drip off of her chin and splatter on her inert hands. She made no move to wipe away the salty liquid.

It had hurt having to stay still when she was forced to let her husband leave her line of sight. Even though they had shocked him back while in the ambulance, his condition had only gotten worse and worse. She had stared at the doors through which her Lawliet had been taken, rushed into the ER so that they could see what the damage was. One of the EMTs had been worried that the bullet had nicked an artery while another thought it had pierced his heart, which would be too ironic to be funny to even her cynical humor if it turned out to be true.

She remembered when one of the nurses approached her, letting her know that they needed his medical information since he was going into surgery. The woman – Eda whatever, from her nametag – had obviously thought that Ebony had been shocked out of competency. No fricken' _shit_ he had been going into surgery! She had been staring at a door that read 'ER', for fuck's sake!

The only reason Ebony had had that information at all was from a visit to the doctor not long after she discovered she was pregnant. In order to see if the baby would be healthy, they had both had their blood checked for any hereditary diseases or disorders that could possibly present themselves in their baby. Lawliet had confiscated the results right after, of course.

It had been a long time since then. Going on seven hours now. Everyone from the Kira case was there with her. Even Misa was there, who had been contacted after everything had gone so wrong. She hadn't been told much of anything other than that L had been shot and had to go into surgery. There was also one new face, a young woman named Claudia Bullock.

Claudia Bullock was the younger half-sister of Halle Linder, whose true name was Halle Bullock. She had the same golden eyes and tall, slender frame as her sister, only her hair was a dark, almost black brown layered to just past her shoulders and her eyes were framed by oval-shaped, bronze glasses that reminded everyone of Watari. Her lips were painted the same bright red her sister's always were and an amethyst class ring told everyone that she hailed from America. She was graceful and dignified just like Halle was, but her clothing was more of a conservative schoolgirl style as opposed to the stylish business-wear that had normally draped around Halle's confident frame. The kanji tattoo for 'air' on the left side of the back of her neck detracted from the schoolgirl look a bit.

In his desperation and complete mental breakdown, Light had gotten off three shots before Ebony had pinned him to the wall and then flung him across the warehouse. While one of those bullets had hit its intended target in the back, the recoil of the shots had caused Light to lose control of the gun since he was inexperienced in actually firing one. That inexperience resulted in the other two bullets nailing Halle right in the chest.

Halle hadn't been as lucky as Lawliet. She died halfway to the hospital.

And so Claudia was left sobbing into her shaking hands after having to identify her older sister's body. Claudia had already lost one person to Kira's hands, though that had been when Higuchi had control of the Death Note. Aoi Koiji, the Director of Integrated Systems of Aoi Industries, was her husband for only three weeks before Higuchi killed him to line his pockets. Seeing her little sister fall into a deep, prolonged depression was what had motivated Halle to become involved with the Kira case. She had hoped that putting the one acting as Kira on death row would give her younger sister some closure, which was why she had worked with both Mello and Near indiscriminately in order to attain that goal.

At least she had seen Kira's end before she went.

"Mommy?" Ebony slowly focused her eyes, only just then realizing that her daughter had stepped into her line of vision to gain her attention and, once failing in doing so, had decided to speak to get the job done. How long had she been standing there? "No cry, please?"

"…I'm sorry, baby girl," Ebony's voice cracked on its way out from all the screaming she had done in the warehouse and all the crying she'd been trying to smother for the last seven hours. At the sight of Rem lifting her arms, Ebony somehow got her body to move so that she could lean forward and lift the little girl onto her lap, though it was in a zombie-like fashion. Everything seemed unreal, hazy, like she was watching everything as though it were happening to somebody else. Rem placed her tiny baby hands on her mother's flat stomach once situated in her lap and gazed into the eyes that matched her own.

"Don worry, Mommy," Rem pushed on her stomach a bit, "Daddy meet Billie. You see."

Misa, who had been seated beside the wilting Shinigami woman, furrowed her brow slightly before her face melted into pure horror.

"Oh, my god…Ebony…." The others turned at the sound since everyone had been so quiet for hours now, "…You're….Are you pregnant again?"

The answer was obvious from the new batch of tears that forced their way from Ebony's puffy eyes. In response to those tears, little Rem reached forward and hugged her terrified mother, trying to get her to stop crying. No one really knew what to say to that. Not only was her husband possibly dying, but there was also the possibility that she would end up raising two children all on her own, one who was too young to remember much about her father later and one who might never get to meet him at all.

From across the room, Halle's sister stood from her seat and went to sit on Ebony's other side. Even though she had not been directly involved with the case and even though she had never met this woman, she had been told a lot about her by her sister. She knew that this white haired woman was L's wife and that she had done much for the case that had claimed her own husband two years ago. Due to L and Halle's acceptance of her heritage, Ebony's Shinigami traits didn't deter her at all. Reading her body language, Claudia refrained from touching her, but tried to comfort her regardless. She hated seeing people in pain.

"Your daughter is right," She said, her voice proving to be very gentle unlike the harsher, more commanding tone her sister had used during her life as a CIA agent and then an SPK agent, "L will be fine. You'll see. He's very strong, and he would never leave you."

Ebony just wrapped her arms around her daughter, holding her as tightly as she could without hurting her. Even though she knew they were just trying to help, hearing people trying to comfort her only made her feel worse. The only thing that would ever comfort her now would be the doctor coming out and telling her that her husband was going to live. That her Lawliet was going to live.

After a while, little Rem fell into an unwilling sleep in her mother's lap. She knew that something horrible had happened to her daddy and that everyone was waiting for him, but she hadn't been able to deny her body sleep like the adults could. She felt kind of bad for sleeping, but her mommy's rocking motions that had started up not long ago had lulled her to sleep.

Ebony absently stroked her daughter's messy hair to comfort herself with how it was the exact same as Lawliet's. That and her rocking in an automatic attempt to soothe her daughter were her only movements as she stared without blinking at the floor. Her tears came and went as they would, though they were always completely silent. In a way, it was worse for her friends to watch her suffer in silence than it would have been to see her bawling her eyes out like someone like Misa would have. At least then they might get some clues as to how to best comfort her.

During what might have been the fourth of fifth hour of his surgery – which one, she had no idea – a nurse had come out to update them on Lawliet's condition. It was against protocol to give out information as a surgery was in progress, but one this long called for an update on his progress. Protocol had fallen slack during Kira's reign anyway, and the medical staff was a bit keyed up from having an actual violence case.

As it turned out, the bullet from Light's gun had nicked one of his ribs, breaking it into several pieces. It had then gone on to puncture his left lung, coming precariously close to hitting his heart. His lung filling with blood explained the ghastly sound of his breathing and why it had been almost impossible for him to draw the proper amount of air back in the Yellow Box warehouses. They had had to drain the blood from his lung before doing anything else and then had to secure his rib to keep it from causing any more damage. Then they had to go about removing the bullet, only there was one small problem.

They couldn't find it.

The only reason Ebony hadn't started screaming in rage at the poor nurse was because she knew they were doing everything they could. She had already made them aware that money was not an issue and that they were to do absolutely anything and everything they could to save her husband's life.

The thing that scared her the most was that the doctors were amazed that he was still alive.

Lawliet had died a few times already. Once in the ambulance and three more times on the operating table. Somehow, he always managed to pull through at the last possible second, much to the amazement of anyone on the hospital staff that was aware of this tragedy. That basically meant the entire staff since gun crimes had plummeted so drastically during the dark age of Kira. This was the first gun crime in several months, so the entire hospital was abuzz with gossip and curiosity and fear.

The biggest rumor going around the hospital was that the ungainly, bizarre young man that had been swiftly wheeled into the OR several hours before was the detective L who had been hunting down Kira for the past three years. His wife had identified him as L Lawliet, after all. Who else could he be? The gossip had spread like wildfire and the only reason why no one had bothered Ebony about it was because Mello had very effectively threatened the entire staff against it when one particularly inconsiderate intern had tried. That particularly inconsiderate intern had walked away from the encounter with a black eye, fear keeping him from reporting the incident.

Needless to say, no one had tried after that. But many had casually popped in on the waiting room to get a peek at those who valued the life of the one in the OR who may or may not be L. They were surprised and saddened at the sight of the twelve people occupying the room in silence and unable to do anything but wait.

…and wait…

…….and wait……….

"Mommy?" Ebony glanced over to her daughter's sleepy eyes, one of which she was rubbing with a tiny fist, "Daddy here yet?"

"…No, baby girl. I'm sorry," Ebony's voice was almost less than a whisper, rough from the abuse it had taken in the last several hours, so she didn't try to talk any louder. There was also the fact that she would probably start crying again if she talked any more than what was absolutely necessary, and she was tired of crying.

Floating in a nearby corner of the full but deathly silent waiting room, Ryuk couldn't help but feel troubled for the Shinigami hybrid folded in the little waiting chair. Ryuk had never been a caring soul as the deceased Rem had. He was rather normal for a Shinigami if you ignored his boundless curiosity and complete intolerance for boredom no matter its brevity. He had no loyalty for anyone but himself, like most other Shinigami, so he knew that his troubled mood had nothing to do with Ebony being a part of his species.

Reluctantly, Ryuk had to acknowledge that he had become a bit fond of this little Shinigami-human, and her even littler Shinigami-human offspring. Once she was able to actually acknowledge him in front of the others, she was always very kind of him. She made sure he always had a steady apple supply and she was willing to entertain his boredom through videogames and movies and anything else he might become curious of. Even though he never returned the actions, he could tell that she might think of him as a friend of sorts despite this entire Kira affair being ultimately his fault. Now, he didn't regret what he'd done, not at all, but he couldn't help but dislike the weird water that kept building up and spilling out of her pink and red eyes because she was so scared.

Her existence had been Hell, and now she was about to lose the love of that troubled life, and he doubted she would ever give love another chance after this. She was far too attached to the genius detective who for all they knew could be dying at this very moment.

Ryuk glanced down at the little lifespan floating above her abdomen, about where her diaphragm was if he was correctly remembering human anatomy from a book he'd pilfered from Light's schoolbag once. Even though the baby's gender was completely unknown, the name Billie Lawliet was displayed just above the fetus's lifespan in the usual crooked writing that every Shinigami saw when looking at a human, born or not. The baby was definitely going to be born, but it might grow up without a father. Ryuk had never bothered to remember the detective's lifespan, so he wasn't sure if he was going to live to meet his second child or not.

And even if he did, he wouldn't be able to tell Ebony. While Ryuk clearly had no problem with bending the rules nearly to the breaking point, that was one rule he would never cross. It would most likely get him killed.

"Excuse me," Everyone looked up at the sound of the doctor's voice shattering the heavy silence, "Which of you is his next of kin?"

"I-I am," Ebony carefully passed her daughter over to Misa and stood on shaky legs. She stumbled a bit from stiff joints but quickly regained her footing and followed the doctor a short ways away in order to speak privately, "He's my husband. How is he? Is he ok?"

"He…we're really not…"

Everyone watched carefully as Ebony spoke to the doctor with surprising calm given the situation. It was a little creepy, but no one dared question it and possibly breaking it. Ebony needed her battle honed calm right now more than anything, and they weren't going to take that from her when she was already so frail. She was playing frantically with her earring and her eyes were quite wide, but those were the only signs of her stress.

Then they saw Ebony fall to her knees.

"Ebony?!" Tech instantly leapt to her feet, her boots thudding against the floor as she rushed to the fallen girl's side, "Ebony, what's wrong?!"

Ebony just shook her head, her eyes wide open and her hands clenching the black fabric over her chest so tightly that a couple of her scarred knuckles popped from the strain. Tears dripped from her eyes to the floor and she was biting her lip so hard that a trickle of blood welled up from the slight tear in the skin. Her breath came in wheezing gasps once she released her lip from its torment, her thin body trembling all over as she kept shaking her head.

"What's wrong?" Claudia came up as well, unable to turn away when someone was so obviously suffering. She looked over at the doctor and repeated her inquiry, fearing the worst. Each and every person in the waiting room held their breath and straightened in their seats, waiting for the doctor's response. Mello and Matt actually stood from their seats and Near looked up from his puzzle that he had been assembling, destroying, and reassembling during their entire stay in the waiting room.

Even though it wasn't the absolute worst that everyone had been terrified of, it wasn't much better.

"I'm very sorry, but we think that her husband has fallen into a coma."

* * *

Author's Note: I adore loopholes. Lawliet's not dead, but he's not out of the woods yet. Aren't loopholes awesome? They are so awesome.

**Madeline Cullen:** When I didn't finish the sentence, I thought you were siccing the Red Pyramid on me. Light's a better target.

**SugarLandBabyGirl:** I probably rekindled your worry, didn't I?

**x-X-xDarkWolfx-X-x:** I'm devious? Cool.

**Timekeeper101:** People like smiles, and people like cake. Lawliet's addicted to cake, and he loves Ebony, ergo he would like her smiles.

**nekosoulreaper:** I can't not use cliffhangers! They exist for a reason: They work. I'm glad you liked the vaccination scene. I shoved it in there at the last second. I do that a lot. Probably from watching House....yeah, it was from watching House when he didn't have all of his patient's medical records. Why the hell do people who are dying lie when that could kill them?

**xxNoTimeToRegret:** Thank you. I like their pairing too, but I'm biased. And don't worry. I'm coming up with an AU LxEbony Death Note fic as we speak...er...type.

**warning746:** Most people react horribly in situations even if they've trained for them, otherwise Matsuda probably _would_ have shot him. But then Ebony wouldn't have had the chance to throw the little prick across the warehouse.

**MythCreatorWriter:** Reminded you of who? I'm lost. And I agree. A cat would definitely lose in a staring contest with L. I'm going to put that in my next fic....Fluffy tears? Interesting.

**Me and Gaara 4ever:** Aw! Thank you!

**Miyuki-ice-fox:** I really hope you mean 'kick Light's unmoving body away' rather than 'lick'....Please say that's what you meant. Please! Oh, and finish the anime. It's good even though L died. You get to see Light's humiliating end! It's better in the manga, but the anime's not too bad either.

**Kit-Kat Punk-lover:** Begging doesn't work on me either. It just makes me laugh. I'm glad you liked the flashbacks. They were intended to be pure fluff, like my new panda bear, Pamu.

**Orohippus:** I hope you are still enjoying this story.

**random-tuesday:** Damn! Long review. I share Ebony's hatred for needles. I had by blood drawn so many times before I learned that my gall bladder was trying to kill me that the insides of my elbows were bruised. And yes, I get a sadistic pleasure from leaving my fans dangling over a disconcerting pool of nothingness.

**Tashio:** Was yea-ta intentional? The Japanese exclamation of happiness is yatta.

**Lunarobi Pride:** Sorry Near and Mello weren't in the flashbacks. I didn't have anywhere to put them.

**Sybil Corvax:** I enjoyed making Ebony go all evil-Shinigami on Light's ass too. It was fun.

**..Jewel:** One of your favorites? Cool. Thank you.

Please review for me. Oh, and I'm having some issues with deciding how Light will die. Please send me your suggestions, but please be serious about it. No silly things like melting cheese or flying Skittles.

-HaleyJo


	31. Conversations

Author's Note: I guess this can be thought of as a New Years present to you all. I would have posted earlier, but I'm watching a Bones marathon on TNT. Bones is awesome! She makes me feel normal.

* * *

**31. CONVERSATIONS**

There were a few things that had gone wrong that led to the coma.

The first was the prolonged bleeding that had gone on since it had taken the ambulance so long to get to the hospital. The Yellow Box warehouses weren't exactly close to civilization, much less a hospital. Also, with crime having gone down so much in the past three years, the EMTs and the ambulances themselves were nowhere near as prepared as they should have been since the three-digit call of 911 came so rarely by then. That had made the process even slower. Lawliet's left lung had been nearly completely filled. It was a miracle in and of itself that it hadn't killed him on the way.

The next thing to go wrong was yet another time issue due to a complete lack of preparation on the medical staff's part. The OR rooms and staff hadn't been ready when Lawliet had arrived, so they had been forced to use CPR to keep him alive long enough just to get him on the damn table where, three years ago, he would have been cut open long before then.

And yet another time issue had asserted itself in the manifestation of Lawliet's shattered rib. They had needed to locate all the pieces to ensure that he wasn't bleeding anywhere else. He hadn't been, but that was pure luck. A piece of his rib had been dangerously close to cutting a major artery, which would have caused him to bleed out in seconds.

In some cruel form of irony, the fourth time consumer had been his childhood injury to his spine that had caused his rib to be hit by the bullet in the first place. Lawliet's ribcage naturally sat a bit differently than most people's did since the injury had been when he was still so young. When people are born, most of their bones are still cartilage so that they can pass through the birth canal without injury and formed and hardened as they grew. His ribcage ended up forming differently because he had walked differently since before they had a chance to harden in a more normal fashion. They sat a bit closer together, not allowing the bullet to simply pass between them as a normal ribcage probably would have.

The search and securing of his rib combined with the long drive to the hospital and the wait for the OR to be operational was what had given the bullet the time it needed to hide. Somehow, the bullet had been caught in his bloodstream and found its way into his left arm. They had only found it at all because his left hand had started turning blue, telling them that the blood circulation was getting cut off somehow.

And of course there was the issue of his dying multiple times. Being revived so many times by a defibrillator has a natural stressful effect on anyone, which was why it was only used in emergencies. Considering that Lawliet had already been in such a critical condition from too much time passing without action had only made it worse for him, traumatizing his system multiple times. Many more times than what would have been necessary had the medical staff actually been ready for him.

In the end, Lawliet's body had more or less shut off to restart itself, not dissimilar to when one rebooted their computer when getting rid of the viruses just wasn't enough to save it. The stress of being shot, unable to breathe while his lung filled with blood, shocked several times on the ambulance, crudely kept alive by CPR while awaiting the OR, and then fished around in for bone fragments and the offending bullet while dying several more times had just been too much for his weakened, struggling, failing body to handle.

So he had just shut down, his mind sealing itself away from the pain and trauma to give his body a chance to heal undisturbed.

When Ebony had learned all of this, she had been silent for a while before a sudden loud crack startled everyone in the room. Her hand had been gripping the edge of one of the small tables in the waiting room while the doctors spoke to her and everyone else. Her grip had intensified over the course of the explanation to the point that the faux wood caved under her fingers, leaving a large chunk missing from the edge. The fingers of her other hand left deep impressions in the semi-plush armrest of the chair she had been sitting in. The doctors had been terrified that her rage was directed toward them, but it wasn't.

It was directed at Yagami Light. At Kira.

So now she stared down at the young genius, her pupils slowly dilating until only a thin ring of pink could be seen around them. Not unlike the constant state of her beloved's eyes that were now closed. She was perched atop the windowsill, one hand against the frame and the other gripping the sill between her bare feet with her toes curled tightly around the edge. Her nails were somewhat lengthened, tapered but duller than they had been in the warehouse. Her canines had gotten a bit longer as well, but not long enough to jut out over her lower lip. Seeing as how it was the night shift, there were very few nurses or interns around to see the intimidating, bat-like wings that slowly worked themselves from her upper back, raven black feathers coating the sides facing the window.

If it weren't for Light and his fanatical desire to purge the world of evil, a desire that was good at its core but completely illogical when contending with human nature, all those time lapses in Lawliet's care would never have come to pass. The medical staff and the EMTs would have been ready to respond to their 911 right away. Lawliet would be awake and talking to her rather than lying completely still on an uncomfortable hospital cot, only the repetitive beeping of the vitals monitor and the steady rising and falling of his thin chest telling her that he was still alive.

While she hadn't killed him, Ebony had definitely injured Light that day in the warehouses. He had multiple contusions on the frontal and occipital lobes of his brain from when she had pinned him by his throat to the wall and then thrown him across the room. But no serious brain damage had been done aside from a concussion or two, not to mention a nasty case of whiplash. His left shoulder had been broken from the impact and the fingers of his left hand were temporarily useless from where his own weight had crushed them after she tossed him.

Well, both hands were useless, really. Light had been completely restrained in his hospital cot, treated like a criminal even when injured, just as he should.

"Yagami Light," Ebony felt a bitter taste in her mouth as she spoke the man's name, shifting in her perch as her feathers ruffled in rage before flattening again. With a grace she'd only attained through a life of fighting, the hybrid creature slid down from the window sill to slink over to the metal chair by Light's bedside. She crouched like a predator and leaned closer to him, "Yagami Light, Kira. Open your eyes before I do it myself."

Almost as though his instincts were telling him that he was in danger, the young murderer's red-brown eyes flickered open. He seemed dazed for a moment before he realized what exactly it was that he was staring at and jumped violently. His gaze turned panicky when he quickly remembered that he was restrained and therefore could go nowhere.

"Quit your squirming, Yagami Light," Ebony said in a cold, eerily calm voice that most certainly could belong to a true Shinigami. She sounded just as frightening as her mother had before her, "I am not here to kill you."

"Heh…then why are you here," Light asked, somehow able to smirk at her, "if not to kill me?"

"Confrontation," Was Ebony's simple reply. As she stared hard at the young genius, almost trying to find what part of his brain made him the killer that he was, she came to a sudden realization.

She had never talked to Kira, not even once, during the entire length of this investigation. While she had always known who he was, she had never had a direct conversation with him when his Kira persona was in full swing. She'd talked to Yagami Light many times, of course, especially when he had lost his memory of being a mass murderer and was therefore a normal, justice-seeking boy. But never had she spoken to Kira, and there was something oddly chilling and fulfilling about finally being able to do so.

"I will never understand you," Ebony spoke after a long silence. It almost seemed as though she was talking to herself rather than the man on the gurney, "Getting rid of criminals sounds all fine and dandy, but you can never get them all. More will come, and many more will remain hidden until they die."

"By my hand!" Light insisted. From what she had heard, Light had more or less broken down at the warehouses, insisting that the world needed him, needed Kira, "This world is rotten! People need Kira!"

"Be silent!" Ebony's hand shot out and was once again wrapped around his throat, applying just enough pressure to impede his vocal chords, "You are sick, Yagami Light. You disgust me! You claim to be doing this for the good of mankind, but you care for no one but yourself! You have ruled through fear, not peace! You have carelessly destroyed so many lives, and all for the sake of your own selfish desires! You are disgusting!"

Light didn't answer her, not that he could even if he wanted to. He merely glared at her, his red-brown eyes daring her to go through with this act. Ebony bit her lip, once again facing the opportunity to kill him, to end it all.

But once again, an image of her family kept her from doing what she so desperately wanted to do, laws be damned. If Lawliet never awoke from his coma – a possibility she absolutely _refused_ to acknowledge – she would be all her daughter had to depend on. Not to mention the tiny life that was currently growing within her abdomen as she crouched over the bronze haired man on the cot, her small hand wrapped around his throat. She could not afford to go to jail no matter how justified her actions might be.

"I will not kill you," Ebony forcibly retracted her hand, allowing Light to breathe normally once more, "I refuse to become you."

"…Did L die?"

"_No_," Ebony hissed loudly at his callous question, well aware that it was a deliberate jab at her beaten, worn, frayed nerves. What really pissed her off was that it was working, "As long as he lives in less than perfect condition, so do you."

"…What?" Light's brow furrowed as he tried to understand her words.

"You don't really think that I would rob my husband of the chance to see you like this?" Ebony grinned wickedly at him, one of her fangs slipping over her bottom lip, "To see Kira weak and bound to an uncomfortable hospital cot with no way to escape the hand of justice? No way to escape _his_ hand? Pah! He _will_ see your end, Yagami Light. You will finally die in the misery of your defeat right before his eyes. I will make certain of that."

"So I was right," That arrogant little smirk was going to get him killed, "L truly did marry a monster."

Ebony did little more than hiss in reply to his statement, well aware that he was trying to get her to snap and kill him. Why, though? Why would he want her of all people to kill him? She was certain that his desire to die was because he knew it was all over, but she couldn't figure out why he would want to die by her hand. It made no sense.

But then again, Light hadn't been making much sense for the past three years.

"There are many definitions of the word 'monster', Yagami Light," Ebony slowly drew away, her Shinigami traits withdrawing just as slowly as she walked to the door. Once opened, the light from the hall allowed the man on the cot to see her angry, pained profile, "But you are one of the worst I've ever seen."

With that being said, Ebony left the serial killer's room, her bare feet making no sound against the cold floor beneath them regardless of the echoing hospital walls around her. She hadn't wanted to go and see Light, the man who had tutored her during high school and probably made it so that she could graduate at all. Seeing him had made her chest burn in a rage she could not be rid of no matter how hard she tried. She was usually quite good at letting things go when she could do nothing about them, when holding onto them would only damage her. It irked her that she couldn't let this go, but she knew that she would never be able to until her husband opened his sweet eyes again.

But she had needed to do it, go see and confront Light, and now that little itch in the back of her mind was gone. Still, it had been nothing compared to the emptiness in her heart. Her white hand pressed against the seemingly bruised organ in her chest as she quietly pushed open the door to the hospital room she had been seeking to return to.

Ebony folded her arms on the edge of the cot and rested her chin on the crossed limbs, her eyes fixated on the thing they had been fixated on for the past two weeks. Very gently, she reached a small hand forward and trailed her fingertips along her sleeping husband's creamy skin, willing him to wake up as she had been doing during her every waking moment.

Watching Lawliet continue to sleep and sleep was the worst form of torture she had ever experienced. Her heart ached as she watched him, almost making her start crying again, but it was like she had no more tears left to give. They had dried up, leaving this horrible, freezing, hollow _emptiness_ in their wake. It was in a way worse than the despair she had been feeling before. She felt nothing at all now, a thing she hadn't felt since his first death, and before that when her mother first left her. It was a feeling she was far more familiar with than she would have liked to be.

"You know, kids are lucky," Ebony said conversationally, as though her lover could hear her, "Rem is so certain that you will wake up and ask for coffee or something. She's probably 100 percent right, actually, but she doesn't have the major anxiety being older and facing a difficult situation gives you. She's lucky like that.

"I _have_ started seeing a doctor, like you wanted me to once this case was finished," Ebony continued, her eyes flickering to a shadow by the door for a moment before ignoring it, "Seems everything's going well. The baby's developing wonderfully, no complications at all to speak of. Morning sickness is still in full swing, of course. Lucky bastard you are to miss all _that_ fun, huh?

"Claudia usually comes with me. She's Halle Bullock's little half-sister. You remember Aoi Koiji, Aoi Industry's Director of Integrated Systems that Higuchi killed while he was Kira? Aoi was her husband for just three weeks. They were high school sweethearts, apparently. It's really a pity that he died since high school loves don't usually survive so long. Halle is dead. Prick Kira wasn't used to handling a gun and two of his three shots hit her. She died on the way here…"

Ebony lost her voice for a second before clearing her throat and going on. Talking to him like this was all she could do to keep her sanity. Either that or it was digging her a deeper hole. Regardless, she continued to speak to him. She sang for him too, sometimes, whenever her voice wouldn't give out on her.

"Claudia's really nice. You'd like her. She seems like your typical bookworm – I swear I've never seen so many books outside a library in my entire life! And you know I spent a lot of my childhood at the library since I couldn't go to school. But she also has a major thing for weaponry. Of any kind. Guns, knives, bow and arrows, anything, but guns especially. And she's a damn good shot! Hit Mello with a paintball from across the length of a football field. Man, he was pissed _off_!

Ebony then grinned and giggled weakly, "To be honest, though, I think he likes her. It's incredible, isn't it? Mello with a crush. And to be honest, I think she likes him too. She obviously enjoys talking to him and getting his attention. Matt and Tech tease him about it like crazy! I swear, I'm surprised Mello's face isn't permanently red! Apparently, Matt's been after Mello for a while about getting a girlfriend, and Tech recruited herself as soon as she learned about it. She says that having a girlfriend would do him some good, which I think is true. That crazy head needs _some_ way to loosen up. He's wound way too tight all the time. It's not at all healthy.

"Random change in topic: but you know Mikami, X-Kira? He went nuts and died in jail four days ago. Matsuda-san thought Near killed him with the thing, but that's not possible. I burned them both, Kira's and mine. I didn't need mine anymore, so I was more than happy to burn it. I kept it just in case there was no other way to take Kira down. It was a bit hard, since it was my mom's, but it needed to be done. It's kinda weird not having it anymore after hanging on to it for fourteen years…."

Ebony paused as she tried to think up anything more she could tell him, her fingers running habitually through his disheveled raven locks. She shook her head slightly and scooted closer to him, laying her head on his pillow so she could speak in his ear.

"I miss you," Ebony felt her eyes sting a bit, but no tears fell, "I miss hearing you talk like a genius and then act like a small child with a major problem with authority. I miss watching you play with Rem and how it makes you smile so much. I miss feeling awkward when you decide to stare at me for what feels like hours. I miss you kissing me in order to make me forget my point in an argument…I miss everything, Lawliet. Everything."

Ebony leaned forward to gently kiss his cheek, tracing her thumb over his silent lips.

From in the hallway, the nurse named Eda that had stopped upon hearing the Shinigami woman talk bowed her head as she moved away from the door. This was her first time encountering a coma patient, and her first time listening to someone talk to one. It was heart wrenching to listen to. This odd but beautiful woman rarely left her husband's side unless it was for her daughter's benefit. She swore that she had never seen someone so loyal to another person in her entire life outside perfect-world books and movies.

She knew that many others in the hospital felt the same way. The raven haired man in a coma was a big topic for gossip since they hadn't had a coma patient in quite some time. Not to mention that it was confirmed that he really was L, the genius detective who had finally caught Kira…

_-----_

"_Hey, Ebbie," Tech walked into the ICU hospital room in which Lawliet had been put. She saw Ebony sitting at his bedside just as she had for the past three days straight, "How're you holding up?"_

"…_Not good," Ebony shook her head, her voice sounding like she had died inside. Her sugar curls were limp from lack of care and dark circles had developed under her eyes from three full days without sleep or much movement from Lawliet's bed. It seemed like she _had_ died inside in all the ways that counted. The only thing keeping her tethered to this side of the thin line of insanity was her baby girl. Otherwise she would have probably just given up._

"_Well, don't worry too much about it," Tech came and placed a comforting hand on the smaller girl's shoulder. She understood when Ebony didn't respond to the gesture, "He's L, so he can't stay here forever. L can overcome anything."_

_Ebony didn't reply. A few tears squeezed their way out from the corners of her eyes, though. Tech carefully wrapped her arms around the girl's stooped shoulders, trying to offer what comfort she could. An eavesdropping nurse held a hand over his mouth and ran off to tell everyone what he had just heard._

"_You're his strength, Ebony," Tech said lowly. Ebony turned slightly to look at her, a small question in her lifeless eyes, "You are his will to live. As long as you stay by him no matter what, I'm certain that he'll wake up for you and your children."_

_Ebony stared at her for a long time, almost as though she was trying to understand what the Hawaiian genius had just said. After an immeasurable moment, a very tiny smile poked at the corners of her mouth, the first one since Lawliet had been shot. She leaned into the supportive embrace slightly while one of her hands reached for one of Lawliet's. She gripped his hand tightly and sighed._

"_Thank you, Tech. You're a good friend."_

"_That's what I'm here for," Tech replied in a kind voice. She gave Ebony a consoling squeeze and continued, "You can always come to me if you need help. You can come to any of us. You know that, right?"_

"…_Yeah, I know," Ebony's thumb rubbed gentle circles in the back of her husband's long, pale hand, "Thank you."_

_Tech then grinned, "Now, I didn't wanna be mean, but you seriously need a shower."_

_Ebony snorted and giggled weakly. Tech sure knew how to make her feel a bit better._

_------_

"Please come back to me," Ebony's hand fisted in the hospital blankets covering his thin chest, "I need you, Lawliet. I need you…"

Feeling her eyes starting to grow heavy, Ebony climbed up on the cot beside her beloved. Taking care not to aggravate his monitors or injuries, Ebony curled up at his side and placed her small hand on his chest under the covers. His heartbeat was steady and strong beneath her palm, granting her enough comfort to drift off to sleep. Her last sight before her body succumbed to its exhaustion was of Lawliet's peaceful face, seeming to glow white under the light of the moon seeping through the window.

Lawliet had an enjoyment of watching the stars and the moon. Knowing this, Ebony kept the blinds open at night just in case he woke up while the sun was down, so that would be the first thing he saw after he saw her.

* * *

Author's Note: I had to wait until I was in a down mood to write this thing. I've been having some issues lately, so my writing has been weird. Bah.

**Stains of Blood:** No. Light's not dead. Dick. Light, not you.

**nekosoulreaper:** Yeah. I know how to torture my characters.

**xxxNoTimeToRegret:** Interesting idea, but I don't think I can use it here. I'll keep it in mind for another story, though. Your creativity has much promise. I knew that already from your DN story. I have it Alerted.

**Timekeeper101:** Yeah. No cheese or Skittles. I don't mind wasting Skittles, but my friend does, so that's out.

**Me and Gaara 4ever:** Have fun torturing Light. He can't move, after all.

**Miyuki-ice-fox:** Yes, you typed lick. Go and look. Lucky for you, my brain immediately went to work on finding what word you had actually meant to type. But it was still funny as hell to read.

**Kit-Kat Punk-lover:** No! Loopholes are awesome. Take that back! Respect the loopholes! Respect them!

**MythCreatorWriter:** What do you mean it takes you out of the writing? Your review confused me.

**warning746:** Comas are kinda funny in a way. They're horrible, but they're just so weird.

**Orohippus:** I guess it does seem Romeo and Juliet-ish, but way more interesting. Reading Romeo and Juliet irritated the hell out of me. No one falls in love in less than a minute. And reading play scripts is just annoying in and of itself, which is why I can't stand Shakespeare.

**Mel1983:** Yes, poor L. When I went over how many times I've killed him, I laughed at myself. I'm more evil than I thought. And this is the first review you've given me where there's no deja vu. Yay!

**SugarLandBabyGirl:** I'm good at worrying you, aren't I?

**xlostinmyownworldx:** That's an awesome compliment. I love pulling at heartstrings.

**Fuchi Isuma:** I don't think 'fastly' is a word. Sorry, I'm a grammar-Nazi.

**Lunarobi Pride:** I could never kill the panda! Well...that's not true. I've killed him exactly four times....Geeze...

Please review for me. And happy new year!

-HaleyJo


	32. Budding Love

Author's Note: I find it kind of funny that I'm listening to a song titled 'Everything That I'm Not' as I update this chapter.

* * *

**32. BUDDING LOVE**

"Shh! Mommy sleepy!"

"Ah, sorry!"

Claudia Bullock was far more careful closing the door than when she had opened it. From her place in one of the chairs, Rem shook her little finger in her direction to scold her. Sad as it would be to most people, Claudia felt thoroughly scolded even though the tiny girl was not even two years old.

She felt no shame, though. She knew that she should have been quieter with the door since it was so hard for Ebony to sleep these days. She adjusted her bronze glasses on the bridge of her nose as she shifted a brown paper bag in her arms.

"I thought you both would like some food," Claudia placed the bag on a nearby table, showing that the bag was filled with various non-perishables, "Your mother can eat when she wakes up."

"Ok!" Rem slid off the cot and scrambled up onto the stool by the table, eagerly searching through the bag for the food she now badly wanted, "Just, shh!"

Claudia nodded, backing up slightly so the tiny demon child could eat in peace. She leaned against the counter, her bespectacled gaze wandering over to the girl's parents.

Ebony was still asleep even though it was already past nine. It wasn't too unusual for her to sleep in, from what she'd heard, but she hadn't since her husband had slipped into a coma. She was curled up against her husband's side, her nose resting against his neck. If one didn't know the current circumstances, one would assume they were merely sleeping lovers content in resting by their beloved's side. Even Lawliet's face was tilted slightly in Ebony's direction as though he could somehow sense her presence beside him. Maybe he could. Who knows? Comatose states were still not completely understood.

Though Claudia hadn't known the pale girl long, Ebony had already gained her full respect. The way she stayed by her husband's side without hesitation or a desire to be elsewhere and how she protected him from the hospital staff who sought to get some evidence that they had seen the great Detective L. Also how she talked to him every day in the hopes that he would hear her. Claudia couldn't help but admire such loyalty to another person. Ebony was refusing to give up hope even though L had been in a coma for 35 days now, just over a month…

Claudia sighed and fished a book from the bag Rem had commandeered, flipping to her bookmark and picking up the story where she'd left off. After a long stretch of silence, during which Rem had eaten her fill, she curled up in the cushy recliner by the window and drifted off in a nap as she usually did after eating a meal. Claudia allowed herself to get lost in her book, becoming obvious to the world around her.

That was until she nearly jumped out of her skin when the door to the hospital room opened without warning. A startled yelp was forced from her red-painted lips before she could cover them, dropping her book in the process.

"Shut up," Mello said lowly as he quietly shut the door behind him, "If you wake up Ebony suddenly, she'll be pissed and most likely attack you. Reflexes from her time in the underworld, so don't be stupid around her."

"I'm sorry," Claudia brought her hands down from where they had covered her mouth. Even though Mello's statements were always harsh, she believed that he wasn't as bad as he made himself out to be, so she didn't allow herself to be offended by his words. The brunette bent down to retrieve her book and inspected it for even the littlest bit of damage, "I startle easily."

"I can see that," Mello crossed his bare arms over his chest and leaned against the counter beside her.

It was absolutely sickening to watch the man he and his rival aspired to be lying motionless in a coma. And put there by the elusive criminal he had finally beaten, no less! If this entire thing boiled down to a draw between L and Kira, Mello wasn't sure if he would be able to stop himself from killing the psychopathic son of a bitch himself.

Claudia shifted a bit to put her book down and the movement caught his eye. He glimpsed the gun holstered at her hip, unnoticed by the hospital since it was under her jacket. His brain was still having difficulty wrapping around the idea that an obvious bookworm was such a gun fanatic. She even _looked_ like a bookworm with her oval glasses and schoolgirlish, conservative wardrobe.

"Excuse me, Mello?" The man's pale blue eyes shifted up from the gun to her face, "How did you end up in the Wammy's House?"

Good grief, it seemed like every kid from Wammy's had the ability to change the atmosphere of a room without moving a muscle. Claudia felt like she had just jumped in a tub of ice water as Mello's face darkened and his lips pressed together into a thin line.

"I'm sorry," Claudia bowed her head, "I was just curious-"

"I murdered my father."

Claudia's head snapped up so fast she felt a little zing go through her neck. Of all the things he could have said, that was not something she had been expecting at all. She wondered for a quick second if she might have been wrong about his inner workings before reminding herself that he had been striving to capture Kira. Even though many of his actions had been undeniably criminal in nature, he had never murdered anyone himself. Not directly, anyway.

"…Why?"

Mello turned slightly to read her expression, unsure if she really wanted to know or if she was searching for a more valid excuse to distance herself from him. He found her golden eyes wide with nothing but curiosity, no ulterior motives to be seen. He couldn't say that he trusted her eyes, but something compelled him to speak anyway.

"Before I went to the Wammy's House, I lived with my mother and father in one of the more privileged areas of town. My parents had rushed into a marriage once they found out she was pregnant-"

"A shotgun wedding, you mean?" Claudia flinched slightly from the sharp glare she received for interrupting, "I'm sorry."

"It's fine. And, yeah, pretty much. My mother was from a poorer family than my father, basically a peasant marrying into royalty. Most everyone saw her as a gold digging whore, but she wasn't like that at all. My father forced her into that."

"Into what?" Claudia clapped her hand over her mouth as it ran away from her again, "I'm sorry!"

"It's fine," Mello sighed irately. He already knew that Claudia had a bad habit of asking questions too soon and finishing people's sentences, "My father owned a big time dance club, and made my mother be one of the dancers. I practically grew up there since my father refused to allow me to be home when he wasn't. He wanted an heir of sorts, and believed that my being raised by a nanny or a midwife or some other adult not of blood relation would 'taint' me.

"Whenever we _were_ at home, my father would digress from everyone's favorite father to a complete animal. I was always getting into trouble, and that just got worse when I joined a gang I met at the club when I was about ten or so. My father used his influence to keep me from getting any marks on my record, but he always would beat the living shit out of me whenever I screwed something up, which happened a lot," Mello narrowed his eyes, "My mother would try to protect me, and end up getting beaten as well. Sometimes it was so bad that she couldn't cover the bruises up with make-up, which meant she couldn't dance. That got her into even _more _trouble."

Claudia nearly pointed out how stupid that logic was, but bit her tongue at the last second. He didn't need her interrupting him yet again when he was talking about such an obviously difficult subject.

"About a month after my eleventh birthday, we were having an especially bad night after I'd pissed off my father as I always did. By then I'd started fighting back, which got me even worse beatings, especially when I left any marks. My mother knew this and tried to protect me even more, ignoring me whenever I told her _I_ was supposed to be protecting _her_. She wasn't very strong, and she had no dealings with self-defense or anything like that.

"But she made a mistake, and ran into the kitchen. The cutlery was still out from dinner," Mello clenched his fists beneath his crossed arms, "I got there too late. My father had already killed her from stabbing her over and over and over. I'm sure I realized I couldn't do anything, but I still reached for the gun I had on me that I'd stolen from a rival gang member a couple years before…I aimed it at my father's head…"

Claudia's hand went to cover her mouth as a startled gasp was forced from her lips.

"That was my first time ever using a gun."

Claudia squeezed her eyes shut, trying not to let tears of sorrow escape. She could clearly see a younger version of him killing his father in a blind attempt to save the life of his mother, getting himself coated with spatters of crimson blood. Mello mistook the closed eyes for disgust.

"I had no friends to help me, so I ran into the deep woods that backed our home, but police dogs treed me before I could get away. I was arrested and charged with manslaughter since my lawyer argued temporary insanity. Quillish Wammy found me in the juvenile detention center after I'd been there a couple years and made the detention staff near crazy with all the fights I got into. My fights scared the shit out of even the most hardened juvies. Watari perused through places like detention centers and mental hospitals from time to time since many geniuses end up in places like that. No one at Wammy's came near me before Matt came and annoyed the hell out of me until I'd be friends with him. Got a black eye out of it-"

"I'm not crying because I feel bad for your father," Claudia felt completely justified in interrupting him this time, "You were just a child and had to witness something so horrible!"

Mello narrowed his eyes. If this sniveling little wench was pitying him, it wouldn't matter that she was a girl. He was going to punch her right in the-

"The idea that you were strong enough to go through all that and still be ok, it's just amazing to me!" Claudia smiled at him as she wiped her eyes, slightly embarrassed from her crying, "Things such as that are what give me hope for humanity."

Mello was beyond confused. How the hell was he supposed to feel about that?

"I'm sorry I'm crying," Claudia laughed embarrassedly, "I cry too easily, I know."

Mello just kept getting more and more bewildered. This girl was just way too weird for someone who had lived on the outside for her whole life. Maybe she needed to go and see a psychologist.

"You need a shrink," Mello stated that last thought bluntly, causing the girl beside him to laugh, which made him irritated.

"Mello," Both of them jumped, looking over at the sudden groggy voice. She still looked dead asleep, but Ebony lifted one hand without opening her eyes and pointed her index finger in their general direction, "If you don't hurry up and ask her out already, I'm going to sock you in the teeth."

Both Claudia and Mello blushed at her words. Mello's reaction was to get angry while Claudia smiled a little behind her hands.

Claudia hadn't been with anybody since her husband was murdered during the first stretch of the Kira case when Higuchi was Kira. She had fallen into a deep depression after his death, which was what had driven her older sister to chase after Kira to the end, where it had cost her her life. Even after she had begun recovering from her loss, Claudia hadn't sought any romantic company. She felt a little timid of them, and thus avoided them even when she was asked out, which wasn't often. It rather obvious that she wasn't interested in dating, and most people her age didn't go for the schoolgirl-looking types.

But since Claudia wasn't one to hide from her feelings, she had accepted her attraction to the blond haired man fairly easily. Though, she wasn't really sure _why_ she had started liking Mello since he always acted like such a jerk. The only way she could explain it was that they had just clicked somehow. His temper tantrums were also just funny to watch when he wasn't being a danger to those around him.

Mello finally just grunted irately and left the room, nearly slamming the door behind him. Claudia looked between the door and Ebony for a moment before opting to follow Mello. She worried that he would do something stupid in his raging embarrassment.

The blond man scowled as he walked through the hospital halls, pausing near a vending machine several doors down. The gentle hum helped him to calm down a bit, but not much. He longed to punch the whirring machine beside him, but held himself back with difficulty. The last thing he needed was to piss people off for vandalism.

Or possibly aggravated assault if someone came to stop him.

This sucked. It seemed that not only were Matt and Tech bugging him about this girl, but _Ebony_ was in on it now, too. Matt and Tech hassled him about it nearly _every fucking day_! Why the hell did they think that he needed a girlfriend? Wasn't that his business and no one else's? He didn't need a girlfriend…

It wasn't that Claudia wasn't an attractive woman, her thick brown hair falling in gentle waves over her shoulders and her golden eyes warm behind her glasses. She was also quite a sweet girl, very calm and soft-spoken and caring. Halle's younger sister was without a doubt one of the very few genuinely good people Mello had met over his life. Aside from her sometimes annoying habits of interrupting and apologizing too much, any young male would enjoy her presence.

It was _him_ that was the problem. Mello was well aware that he was not anyone's idea of a good partner, being short-tempered and violent and insensitive and the list just went on and on. His very being resonated anger problems and a tendency toward destructive and impulsive behavior at the slightest provocation. Ebony was violent as well, but she had much more control than he did, not to mention an abundance of contrasting empathy to reign in her aggressive impulses.

And then there was also another problem….The matter of his burn scars.

Mello was damaged now, not something anyone would want to look at, much less someone like Claudia. She wouldn't want to be seen with someone deformed like him, and he couldn't blame her. He wasn't oblivious to the stares he got for his scars, each pair of eyes showing fear or disgust or – the very worst in his opinion – pity. He ignored the insensitive, judging stares to the best of his ability, but he still hated them.

No, hate wasn't strong enough. He absolutely and completely _loathed_ them. They made him feel like those around him were trying to peel off his scars to see what he had been before the explosion, which only made him more aware of the ugly marks.

"Mello?"

He only turned his head, seeing Claudia timidly standing behind him out of the corner of his eye.

"Are you ok?"

"I'm fine," He answered harshly, unable to reign in his irritation. He unconsciously moved his ragged hair to hide the scar on his face, feeling a twinge of shame when she looked at the ugly wound he would carry for the rest of his life.

"You know, you don't have to hide it," Claudia spoke softly, causing him to turn to properly see and read her expressions. Claudia blushed and adjusted her bronze glasses a bit before mumbling to the floor, "I think it's kinda hot, actually."

Mello's electric blue eyes widened dramatically and he nearly choked on his own saliva. Claudia thought that his scar was….hot? Since when did she say such bold things as that? His eyes then narrowed in suspicion and some disgust with himself for getting his own hopes up like that.

"If you're trying to make me feel better, then stop," Mello bit out, causing Claudia to snap her head up so fast it was a wonder how she didn't get whiplash, "I don't need your pity."

"I-I'm not! I mean it!" She blurted out, much to her own embarrassment. But she didn't want him to think she was just being patronizing, "Tha-that's what I think! Really!"

Mello considered her. His eyes roved over her earnest face and pleading eyes, seeing the candid honesty in those pools of liquid gold. He wasn't really sure how to react to such honesty since he was normally surrounded by people who lied so much they began to believe their own hypes. He also just wasn't that great with dealing with females, something that seemed to be a running epidemic with Wammy's kids. Tech and Ebony were different since Tech was Matt's girlfriend and Ebony was married and could match his violent tendencies. Handling someone who was almost too sweet to be real was completely foreign territory to him.

"Come on," The sudden brake in silence made Claudia jump. She didn't move from her spot as Mello began walking away from her in his usual arrogant stride. It was like he had nothing to prove to the world but rather the world had to prove itself to him. That was another aspect of him that drew her in.

"Come where?" She asked, still staring at his leather-clad back. He didn't stop moving as he responded to her question.

"We're going to go eat. Ebony'll be fine and I haven't eaten yet today."

Claudia blinked. Was Mello….asking her out? He sounded just as commanding as he always did, but maybe…She moved swiftly to catch up with him after the shock of his abruptness had worn off enough for her to remember how to walk. She looked over to his face – not a hard thing to do since she was only an inch shorter than him – and saw the very, very faint pink dusting his cheekbones in complete defiance of his character.

Claudia smiled a little and twined her fingers together behind her back. A blush invaded her face as well, though it was much deeper than his.

It seemed that Mello just might like her after all.

* * *

Author's Note: This was cute, wasn't it? This was the only way I could think of that Mello would handle asking someone out. It had to be a demand, not a question since questions make you vulnerable. Oh, and I new picture has been uploaded to my DiviantArt page. It's of Ebony and Shinigami Rem. Go check it out.

**Me and Gaara 4ever: **Keep tightening that rope, please!

**x-X-xDarkWolfx-X-x:** Do both! Especially the shoe thing!

**Stains Of Blood:** Mello does have a girlfriend now. See, you were right!

**Timekeeper101:** Yeah, I know this seems a bit drawn out, but you'll be happy soon. And wasn't this a good thing too? Mello finally has a love life.

**Lunarobi Pride:** What do you mean? I'm not totally sure what Ebony would sound like...that's a tough question.....

**nekosoulreaper:** Matt has to be a brat about everything. That's...Well, that's Matt!

**xxNoTimeToRegret:** I've wondered what the Shinigami King looks like too, but it's almost better that we don't know. Imagination is often worse than reality.

**MythCreatorWriter:** Ok, I thought that's what you mean, and I know what you mean. My fingers just run away from me on the keyboard.

**Orohippus:** I know. I was just saying that reading Shakespeare annoys me.

**Kit-Kat Punk-lover:** Yes. I very much enjoy torturing my readers. I'd get in trouble if I tortured people in real life.

**Miyuki-ice-fox:** You haven't pm-ed me your idea....

**Crunch Berry Baroness:** Do I know you? I don't recognize your name...

**warning746:** I'd say I'm sorry, but I don't like lying.

**The Blonde One:** Yes, that nurse should have the shit beaten out of him. Stupid, inconsiderate morons....

**SugarLandBabyGirl:** I hope this chapter makes up for all the other sad ones.

Please review for me! And go look at my new drawing of Ebony and Shinigami Rem.

-HaleyJo


	33. Watch Your Eyes

Author's Note: Sorry I haven't updated recently. Back to school week after vacation exhaustion coupled with sucky sleep. What fun.  


* * *

**33. WATCH YOUR EYES**

Soft humming drifted around the room, sending a sort of electricity through the air. The air shimmered with it, almost like it was dancing. The melody made the sterile, unmoving air in the hospital room a bit more bearable. It was soothing and peaceful, enough to lull someone to sleep if they were around to hear it.

Then it suddenly stopped.

Ebony's breath fogged the window as she sighed heavily, her constant worry beginning to finally take its toll on her body. She was so tired all the time now, slipping back into the empty creature she had been before meeting Lawliet. The creature that didn't care if she lived or died, but couldn't be bothered with suicide. She was only existing because her body hadn't given out on her yet.

At least she had her little girl to keep her going now.

_--------------_

_Ebony glanced around the waiting room carefully, trying to find whatever it was that she was looking for. She kept getting glances from the people around her. Appreciative gazes from the few men and insecure ones from the women who made up the majority of the population in the room. The unbalance in the male to female ratio understandable since it was a clinic waiting room for those expecting prenatal care. It was a bit depressing that there were a few teenage girls here as well, but it couldn't be helped when you considered the impulsive and insecure behavior of the adolescent species. Ebony couldn't really pass judgment since she had gotten pregnant when she was eighteen, but she had been truly in love and married before and by her delivery. Besides, she hadn't thought she was _physicallycapable_ of getting pregnant!_

_One girl had what she assumed was her boyfriend with her, which was pretty neat. He seemed to be genuinely concerned for her and the baby, as he kept placing his hand on her swollen abdomen to check on his son or daughter. If she wasn't mistaken, those were silver promise rings on their fingers. She could see another girl looking at the couple with a sad, envious gaze. Apparently her boyfriend wasn't nearly as responsible and mature as this girl's was._

"_Is it that painting over there?"_

"_No!"_

_Ebony huffed and looked around again, narrowing her eyes just a bit as though that would help. She could see Claudia looking around too and ground her teeth together, determined to win._

"_Is it that magazine cover?"_

"_Nu-uh!"_

_Ebony began tugging at her lower lip, a habit she had gotten from her husband after watching it so many times. She wondered idly how soon it would be before their daughter picked up on their habits as well._

_The door to the doctors' offices suddenly opened. A middle-aged nurse in a pink outfit glanced over the clipboard she was holding before glancing around them room._

"_Ebony Lawliet?"_

"_That's me," Ebony hefted Rem up into her arms, abandoning the game of I Spy for now. _

_Claudia followed her and the nurse through the door and down the hallway. Take a right, third door on the left. Ebony sat down on the cot while Claudia claimed one of the two chairs by the window through which big, fluffy flakes of snow could be seen drifting to the ground. It was being said on the news that a big snowstorm would be hitting by 9:30 PM tonight, but that didn't mean anything. The weather people were wrong more often than not._

_The doorknob turned._

"_Good morning, Mrs. Lawliet," An older woman with slightly graying hair and a white lab coat entered the room, giving them a pleasant smile._

"_Goo morning!" Rem leaned forward from her place in Claudia's lap and waved at the doctor, giving out one of her big, adorable smiles that charmed any and everyone close enough to see. The doctor's gaze flickered to her and Ebony glimpsed the discomfort from seeing Claudia with her._

"_Good morning Miss…"_

"_Bullock," Claudia bowed her head respectfully from her seat, "Claudia Bullock."_

"_It's a pleasure to meet you. I'm Dr. Tsuji," The doctor sat down in the wheeled chair by her desk, "Are you Mrs. Lawliet's life partner?"_

"_Oh, no! Nothing like that!" Claudia blushed a little, "She's married. I'm just a friend."_

"_I see," Ebony nearly frowned at the relief hidden in the doctor's gaze. So she was a homophobe, huh? "Well, Mrs. Lawliet, first things first. How long have you been pregnant? How long have you known?"_

"_Christmas, actually," Ebony replied. She folded her hands neatly over her lap as she pulled her legs up to sit Indian-style on the crackly paper that covered the cot, "I found out on January 23__rd__ after I started getting morning sickness again."_

"_Alright," Dr. Tsuji scribbled down a few notes and glanced at Rem, "This obviously isn't your first child. Your daughter has your eyes."_

"_Mm-hm," Ebony nodded and smiled at her little girl, "And she has her father's hair. She'll be turning two in August."_

"_Where is her father?" Dr. Tsuji instantly saw how tactless that question was. The air in the room seemed to grow colder._

"_My husband…is in a coma," Ebony clenched her hands together and had to take a deep, calming breath to steady herself._

"_Oh…I'm..sorry…" Dr. Tsuji didn't really know what to say. She had expected this white haired young woman to say that her husband had left her, something she had seen many times in her career as a doctor._

_---------_

It was still somewhat astonishing to her to look back and realize how dead she had been until Lawliet had dragged her into the Kira case by threatening to expose her homeless status to people who would have put her in an orphanage. She had been able to laugh at things and enjoy them, yes, but she hadn't ever been truly happy. Even when she had thought she was, she wasn't. She had only started to really feel after meeting Lawliet, though the first things she had felt were anger and irritation at his uncanny manipulation skills.

That was probably the reaction Lawliet caused in everyone he met.

Ebony glanced away from the window, checking on Lawliet's motionless form for a moment before returning her gaze to the moon outside. His monitors had shown some brief changes in brain activity every now and then over the past week or so, but he had yet to wake. The doctors tried to keep her positive while at the same time trying to keep her from getting her hopes up too high.

She wished they would do neither. If they were taking the time to comfort her, it could only mean that they weren't anticipating that he would ever wake up. They believed he would never be awake and talking and smiling at her again, a very real possibility she denied herself from accepting even though she knew it was unhealthy.

Ebony lightly fingered one of her ivory curls, absently wrapping and unwrapping the lock around her thin fingers. Tech had finally forced her to take some time away from Lawliet's side to bathe, something she often had to do since Ebony was practically glued to his bedside. Her hair was finally completely dry even though she had showered over four hours ago. She always let her hair air dry since her curls always looked nicer that way, and since her hair was so thick it always took forever to dry.

She placed one hand over her face, smelling the cherry blossom scented soap she had used. She kept her eyes closed, not wanting to see anything at all if it wasn't her husband's eyes. She took a deep calming breath and forced her hand from her face, wrapping both arms around her middle.

She wouldn't show it, for the sake of those around her and her own mental stability, but she was getting scared. She didn't want her children to grow up without their father. Both she and Lawliet were prime examples of how having just one adult person care for you was enough to keep you from teetering off the edge of insanity. But she didn't want her children to have to be afraid of that edge at all.

Ebony felt her throat close against another wave of heartrending sorrow and guilt and fear and anger. Why did Lawliet have to keep suffering so much? He had been severely neglected during his attachment years and lost the only person to care for him before he was even five. Then he was left to rot in a mental hospital for nearly three years and grew up with no friends until meeting her. Then his guardian and friend Watari was taken from him in such a horrible way. And now, when he finally had the family that he had always wanted even if he hadn't known that he wanted it, he was lying in a coma unable to enjoy it.

'_He doesn't deserve it,'_ Ebony bit her lip harshly, _'He deserves to finally have some happiness. He's done so much for the world. Why can't he have _his_ happy ending?'_

To calm herself, Ebony started singing again. The words were a bit shaky from her struggle to keep her composure, still as peaceful as ever. But it seemed like no matter where she went or what she did, she could never escape her reality.

The length of the coma was what was most worrisome. Despite several CAT scans and EEGs, there seemed to be no major traumas aside from the gun wound that his body would need to shut down to heal. Lawliet's doctor suspected that perhaps Lawliet didn't _want_ to wake up. People sometimes relived traumas when they fell into a coma. They sometimes remembered things they would rather forget.

He had told her that on the 26th day of Lawliet's coma.

That wouldn't be surprising. Lawliet had had a pretty traumatic life. She could understand the desire to go to sleep and never wake up so as to avoid life. She had wanted such a thing herself on multiple occasions, specifically after losing her mother for the first time and then losing Lawliet.

Ebony took a deep breath and then continued singing, comforting herself as much as her sleeping husband. She felt that if she stopped, she would break down completely. She had gone this long without losing her composure, and she wasn't about to let it go now.

"E….Ebo-Ebony…?"

Her heart constricted in her chest. She clapped her hand over her mouth and spun around, seeing her husband's eyes half open. They were a bit bleary, but he was awake.

_He was awake!_

-oooOooo-

It took a while for him to regain his senses.

At first, he was at a complete loss for anything. He wasn't sure where he was, or who he was, or how he had gotten here. Wherever 'here' was, of course. He recalled wavering, brief periods of consciousness in recent days – or weeks, or however long it had been – but not enough to acknowledge anyone or anything around him. As his eyes began to focus, he began to identify the things he was looking at.

A white, tiled ceiling and white walls. They probably would have blinded him had it not been so dark. An IV pricked the back of his left hand, supplying his body with the hydration it needed to survive when he couldn't drink any himself. An arterial line was set in his left wrist to monitor the pressure and concentration of oxygen and carbon dioxide in his blood. A few small electrode pads were stuck to his chest, indicating that he was wired to an electrocardiogram to monitor his heart rate and rhythm.

This was good. He could at least identify what was happening to him. Now he needed to remember _why_.

Sound was what he became aware of next. Singing, gentle and sweet. It was almost soothing enough to send him back to sleep, but he fought against it and the morphine he was certain was also making him drowsy. He had just awakened, and he needed to remember why he had been asleep in the first place. He knew that sleeping was rather foreign to him, though he couldn't recall why.

His vision was clearing more and more, letting him take in objects farther away from him. A hospital room? Yes, he could be certain of that. The antiseptic chemical smell and overbearing white were obvious indicators of a sterile environment such as a hospital, and the machines he was hooked up to confirmed it. The music was odd, though. Hospitals didn't play music…

That was when he saw the figure by the window.

Female. Petite. Pale as the moon outside. Twice as beautiful. She was the one singing. For a brief moment he wondered if he was dead, but then he reminded himself that he wouldn't be hooked up to devices intended to monitor his vitals if he was no longer among the living. He felt as though he knew the girl by the window, knew her enough to notice and care that she was so obviously in pain. Was she hurting because of him? That would make sense since he was on the gurney and obviously in less than perfect condition if the numb soreness of his body was any clue. But why was she hurting over him? How close were they…?

A sharp crack echoed through his memory.

He remembered himself. He was L Lawliet, given such an odd name by his older half-sister Billie since she was just four years old at the time. He had a permanent hunch from when her father, Kendall Lawliet, had pushed him out his window when he was four. Billie had saved him from the wrath of her father the night he killed her and their mother in a drunken rage. Quillish Wammy, a famous inventor, had later found him at a mental hospital and taken him to one of the many orphanages he had set up for intellectually gifted children around the world. He had grown up there under Quillish's care and with his help as Watari, he had become known to the world of law enforcement as only L, a genius detective who could solve any case presented with. He had been working on an impossible case known as the Kira case of a mass-murderer who carried out his killings with a supernatural notebook from another realm. The realm of Shinigami, death gods.

He remembered this woman. She was Ebony Rose Accott, a girl he had met in the hopes that she would be able to help him convict his only suspect of being Kira. She was a reforming bare knuckled fighter who he had completely freed from that world after falling in love with her, something he had not intended but hadn't been able to stop. He still loved her even after discovering that she wasn't totally human. Half of her genes came from a Shinigami named Rem, a surprisingly motherly being for her species. That same Shinigami had killed Watari and himself to save the second Kira, Amane Misa, only to revive him later on to be with her daughter. Ebony Rose Accott had soon after become his wife, altering her name to Ebony Rose Lawliet, and gave birth to their daughter nine months later. They had named their daughter for Ebony's mother, Rem, and his guardian, Quillish Wammy. They had continued their chase after Kira after about two years in hiding, which led up to a confrontation of all those involved in the case in the Yellow Box warehouses on Daikoku wharf, where Ebony had fought during her years in illegal fighting.

Kira, Yagami Light, had attempted to shoot their daughter, and he had gotten in the way. He had been shot in the back…and taken to the hospital…..

…and he was alive….

He needed to talk to her. He needed to let her know that he was ok. He wet his lips and had to swallow several times before he could finally speak.

"E….Ebo-Ebony…?"

The young woman froze and clapped her hand over her mouth, halting her singing instantly. She spun to face him and seemed to not be breathing. Her pink and red eyes were wide and glistened with tears.

It took all of two seconds for her to be at his side and cupping his face in her trembling hand, all but devouring his lips with hers.

"Eb-…E-….Ebo-…." Lawliet finally gave up on talking, as Ebony wouldn't leave his mouth free long enough for him to do so. He could taste her tears and focused on getting his arm to move. It was quite a bit of work, telling him that he had been unconscious for a long time. But he eventually was able to rest his hand in her hair, trying to comfort her and assure her that he was alright.

"You're awake," Ebony sobbed between frantic kisses, her entire body shaking with too much emotion to contain, "I-I thought…I was so sc-scared you wouldn't…Th-the doct-doctors th-thought…y-you're awake…"

"Please…don't cry," That was the only thing he could think to say, the salt from her tears still evident on his lips. His hand shook as he petted her hair, still weak from unconsciousness, but his need to comfort his wife kept it moving.

The nurse Eda appeared in the doorway, alerted by changes in his monitors, only to stop and smile in the doorway. She didn't want to intrude upon such a moment, so she backed away and quietly shut the door, intent on going to tell everyone that the detective was awake but to not bother him until morning. Not exactly hospital protocol, but she felt that L and his wife more than deserved the time alone.

Lawliet ran his thumb over Ebony's cheek, able to do so since she was holding his hand against her face. He resisted the urge to use his other arm as well, not wanting to disturb the IV or the arterial line in his wrist and hand.

"Lawliet," Ebony's crying reduced her voice to nothing more than a hoarse whisper as she kissed his fingertips, "How-how do you f-feel?"

Lawliet did a mental assessment of his physical and psychological condition. A bit slower than usual, but that was to be expected from his muddled, drugged state.

"Tired…Sore," He breathed at length, refocusing his eyes to hers, "Morphine?"

"Probably," Ebony nodded, shifting so that she was lying next to him, still holding his hand against her mouth like she had in the ambulance, "You _were_ sh-shot. You're he-healing well, th-though."

"Yes…" Lawliet tried to remember what had happened, but the events directly after the sound of the gunshot were fuzzy, "Is…Rem alright?"

"Y-yes. She's perfect," Ebony reached over to trace the angles of his face and run her fingers through his messy hair. She still almost couldn't believe that he was awake and talking, "I love you."

Lawliet's eyelids hung heavy over his eyes, but he refused to let the drugs force him back to sleep.

"I love you as well," His eyes drifted lower, "The baby? It is developing well."

"I think you h-heard me," Ebony giggled feebly, tears of unadulterated relief still streaming unchecked down her face, "N-no problems at-at all."

"Good," Lawliet tugged tiredly on a lock of her hair, wanting her to kiss him again. She did so without hesitation, gentler this time now that her intense euphoria was wearing off to be replaced by peaceful bliss. She rested her forehead against his once they parted. Lawliet only frowned and moved his hand over her face, "Please don't cry."

Ebony nodded, her hands moving to aid Lawliet's in cleaning her face. The least she could do for him was stop crying…

"Is it ok f-for me to be mad at you now?" Ebony asked and giggled through her ebbing sobs. She frowned then, "Why did you lie to me?"

It took him a moment to figure out what she was talking about before it hit him.

The conditions of his revival. Of course she would be angry about that, which was why he had never told her before and probably never would have had he not thought that he was going to die. Being lied to, even if it was a little thing, was not something Ebony took lightly.

"Though I don't recall, I'm certain I explained it already," Lawliet took a deep breath. Just that one sentence left him weary. That was going to be annoying, "I didn't want you taking risks that could take you from me. Selfish, yes, but I didn't want to leave it up to you."

Ebony shut her eyes, working her fingers through his dark hair. She was still upset with how he had lied to her, but she couldn't really begrudge him for it. He had had everything he had ever cared about taken from him, and didn't want to lose something else.

Lawliet waited nervously until Ebony laughed again. Sort of crying and laughing at the same time. She cupped his face in her hands and nuzzled his nose.

"I'm so relieved you're awake I have to forgive you," Lawliet smiled at her. He reached forward and traced his fingertip under her eyes.

"You should rest," He said before his eyes widened a bit, "How long have I been asleep?"

"…43 days," Ebony's voice was pained and she shut her eyes in anguish, "Six weeks and one day. Please don't ever do that again, or I'll have to hit you."

"43 days…" Lawliet marveled over the idea that he had slept that long. That was probably more than he had ever slept in his whole life. He glanced over at the clock, seeing that it was 11:27PM. He must have been awake for a few minutes, making his waking moment around 11:25PM. If he was calculating correctly, he had been asleep for about 1,031 hours and 25 minutes.

In short, too long.

"I'm sorry," Lawliet cut her off before she could speak, "I know that you feel the apology is unnecessary, but I am apologizing for your pain. I am empathizing, something you taught me to do. Now please rest."

Ebony's expression softened and the pretty blush he loved spread across her face. She closed her eyes in flattery for a moment before opening them again and tracing his lips with her fingertips.

"Sleep will come when it will," She said, nuzzling his nose again, "I just want to watch your eyes…"

* * *

Author's Note: I think you will all be happy with me now.

**Tashio:** Now, I'm evil, but I'm not _that_ evil. Plus L's too cool to leave in a coma or get amnesia. Thanks for taking the time to review.

**x-X-xDarkWolfx-X-x:** Yes....very insane....Can't pass judgment, though. That would be being hypocritical, something I hate to be.

**Lunarobi Pride:** I'm not sure. I wouldn't really want to give her a voice since that might wreck other people's impression of her. Like when a book's made into a movie. And I'm glad you like Claudia. I had some issues visualizing her too, but I'm going to be posting a picture of her real soon.

**nekosoulreaper:** Yeah, I figured that killing somebody would be the way to go with Mello's reason for getting into Wammy's. And thanks for the compliment on my picture. It took forever!

**Timekeeper101:** Ebony's hands are a bit small because I'm not that great with drawing children yet. She's only like, twelve or something there. Claudia's comment about Mello's scar made me laugh too. It came to me just suddenly and I couldn't resist putting it in.

**xxNoTimeToRegret:** Here's what happens next. Are you as happy as I am?

**Kit-Kat Punk-lover:** Yeah, be careful! Don't pity Mello, or he'll have to kill you.

**Miyuki-ice-fox:** Woot an annie? Interesting...

**The Blonde One:** Yes, Mello's adorable when he's crushing on someone because he has such an I-don't-need-anyone mentality. So cute!

**Me and Gaara 4ever:** I have a snow shovel. Will that help?

**MythCreatorWriter:** Damn! Long review. People come out of comas without brain damage. They need physical rehab, but their brains can be just fine. You're not the only one who had trouble seeing Claudia, so I'm posting her real soon. Hopefully tomorrow.

**SugarLandBabyGirl:** I'm glad you liked Mello and Claudia. I was worried, but I've gotten nothing but positive reviews about the pairing. Thanks.

Please review for me.

-HaleyJo


	34. It's Over

Author's Note: Here's the moment you have all been waiting for! Myself as well! Hee!

* * *

**34. IT'S OVER**

"I am still 91 percent certain that this is unnecessary."

"Uh-huh. And I'm 100 percent sure that I don't give a damn what you think about this matter, and 100 trumps 91."

Lawliet sighed at his wife's tenacity, but decided to give her a break for now.

Their current bicker session was over his use of a wheelchair when roaming about the hospital for fresh air. While he did need to practice walking again to regain the strength and coordination in his legs, he wasn't to do that over long distances. So, when he wasn't stumbling around his room using Ebony as a crutch, said woman was pushing him around via wheelchair. He still retained his crouching position, and he had asked Ebony to bring him a set of his own clothes so as to avoid the hospital robe. His antics both confused and frustrated the doctors, but Ebony would just smile.

She said that seeing any of his quirks made her inexorably giddy from her head to her toes.

"You'll live," Ebony leaned down to speak into his ear, bumping her head against his, "You'll be outta here in a few days, back with me and Rem where you belong."

"Yes. And I will be accompanying you to the doctor's during your prenatal care as I should have been doing," Lawliet's hand tightened slightly on his kneecaps while his other worried his lower lip between his fingers, "I apologize for that, too."

"Pfth!" Ebony scoffed at him, "That's Kira's fault, not yours. And everything's been going wonderfully. Besides, Claudia-"

"Yes, I know that she has been accompanying you," Lawliet craned his neck so that he could look up at her behind him, "While I cannot recall your voice or your words, it seems that my brain still absorbed all that you informed me of during my comatose state. Claudia mostly accompanied you, the young brunette woman who my second successor has taken a rather strong liking to."

"That still boggles my mind," Ebony giggled, "Mello's pretty good to her, actually. She handles his temper tantrums real well, too."

"An admirable feat in and of itself," Lawliet agreed, pleased when Ebony leaned down to kiss his lips before returning her focus to directing his chair.

"How did Near end up at Wammy's?" Ebony suddenly asked. She answered his slightly raised brow, "I know everybody's story of how they came to that place. Mostly through eavesdropping, but since Near's basically mute, I can't use that method."

"Near's is a sad tale," Lawliet sighed and turned back around, examining the bright red apple he was holding by its stem between his long fingers, "Due to his albinism, his birth parents rejected him and dropped him off at a church while he was still an infant. It was a home birth, I believe, to a pair of stupid, scared teenagers."

Ebony sighed as she recalled all the teenage girls she had seen during her visits to the doctor for her prenatal care. Teenagers truly could be very stupid people.

"He passed through the system until Watari saved him from that life when he was around seven or so years old and living in a rather abusive orphanage for unwanted children," Lawliet absently ran his thumb over his lips, "He was found wisely hiding in the air vents when the building was raided by police officers. They had finally gained the evidence they needed to arrest the caregivers with multiple long-term child abuse and neglect charges. But Near was in rather poor shape by then. Malnourished, dehydrated with open wounds, sullied, and suffering from rather severe RAD."

"RAD?"

"Reactive Attachment Disorder," Lawliet elaborated, "We all have had it to some extent, except for perhaps Matt, but Near was the worst since he had been shown no familiarity or affection since his birth. Mello had his gang and mother while I had my sister at the very least. Near had no one. He has recovered some, but relationships are still quite alien and useless to him. He sought out his parents once," Lawliet sighed almost inaudibly, "That was probably a mistake on his part. He found them, and they had had four children since him, all of whom were 'normal' progeny. It was confirmation that they had simply thrown him away."

Ebony looked down in sadness, but felt that she understood Near a bit more. He disregarded people as useless since that was what he had been presented with his whole life. Only keep someone around if they were useful to you. The way he clung to her was probably a subconscious desire to prove to himself that his appearance was not something that needed to be fixed. He was fine the way he was and perhaps affection was out there for him somewhere. After all, if _she_ had found it, he certainly could too.

She hoped he would one day.

"You sure you're up to this?" Ebony asked, for the fifth time that day already. Lawliet lifted his eyes to the ceiling, "You really are well enough?"

"More than, love," Lawliet replied. His voice was low but firm, the kind of tone he used when he was going to get his way no matter what anyone did, "This must be done. You had your turn, now I get mine."

Ebony nodded solemnly, unable to contend with that logic.

They paused outside a hospital room door, and Lawliet quickly shot out his hand to turn the knob.

Light turned to see who was entering, instantly furious when he caught sight of those insane, dead, insomniac eyes that had been the bane of his existence for the last three years. Though, he did take some satisfaction in seeing the great detective L confined to a wheelchair by the bullet _he_ had put in his hunched back. He had heard that the detective had awakened from his coma just a week ago, though seeing Ebony running past his door smiling had made that news obvious before he had actually heard it. Ebony had never put forth the effort to smile during L's 43 days of unconsciousness.

L carefully placed his long hand on Ebony's that had been on his shoulder and twisted around to face her, "Give us a moment, love."

She looked like that was the last thing she wanted to do, but she knew that Light could do nothing to anyone at that moment, restrained as he was. She bent down to kiss her beloved before leaving the room, though it was doubtful that she would go very far.

Both men were silent for a time. They simply stared each other down, not unlike when they first saw each other in person during the college entry exams. Only this time their hatred for one another ran much deeper than the superficial, moral hatred that used to be there. L hating Light for his cause, and Light hating L for attempting to destroy his cause.

Now, Lawliet hated Light for killing Watari and hurting his family. Now, Light hated L for winning in their battle of the minds.

"Yagami Light," Lawliet broke the silence first, passing the apple he held from hand to hand in front of his knees, "I hope your restraints are uncomfortable."

Light's eyes narrowed, "How's your back?" He asked in retaliation.

"Quite sore. But much better than that bullet being in my daughter's face," Lawliet's wide eyes narrowed as well. It was an admittedly frightening contrast, "That was indeed a new low for you, Yagami Light. Attempting to shoot an innocent child? Not very God-like behavior, I must say."

"What are you doing here, L?" Light demanded, refusing to be strung along the detective's irritating small talk. He had known that this moment was coming. He had known ever since Ebony came to visit him those weeks ago and refused to kill him. Still, that didn't make the encounter any less bitter.

"I have no reason to lie to you now," Lawliet shrugged, glancing over the murderer's restraints, "I have come to gloat."

Light grit his teeth against the desire to scream. He was not going to give L that satisfaction.

"Though I'll admit, you did get in one last jab," Lawliet mused, beginning to spin the apple with his long fingers, "Trying to get my wife to snap and kill you with her bare hands…That is rather upsetting. Understandable, though, as a last effort to win against me," Lawliet tugged on his bottom lip, "My wife going to jail while I am in a coma, leaving our daughter without her parents."

Light scoffed at the man's casual, ubiquitous tone, "You still think you know everything, L."

"As do you. I suppose it is a weakness we share. But you should have known that Ebony is stronger than that after spending most of her life in the criminal underworld," Lawliet rested his large dark eyes on Light, sending him a tiny grin, "She has long since conquered her desire for revenge. She has admirable self-control. Though she did not understand why you wanted her to kill you, she resisted the urge, which is stronger in her than most perhaps because of her Shinigami blood-"

"GO TO HELL!"

Lawliet couldn't help but chuckle under his breath at Light's reaction. It was rather fascinating for him to see that the great, fearsome Kira could be and had been reduced to a psychologically broken mess.

"You can't say that you don't understand me!" Light spat at him, silencing his laughter. His face was growing bright red in his boiling ire, "You know exactly what it's like to be unable to do anything to protect people! You know what it's like to be a victim! The people I've judged are evil people just like the man who killed your sister!"

Lawliet paused at that. Billie? Light knew that her father had killed his older sister? Well, that wasn't too surprising. After learning his name, he must have searched it for leverage against Ebony and come across his family's obituary in the newspaper from so long ago in 1981. It couldn't have been too much trouble for him to have pieced together the fact that he had been born from an extramarital relationship. Light was, after all, a genius to match himself.

"Yes, I do understand your desire to eradicate evil from this world, Yagami Light, perhaps better than you yourself do," Lawliet replied, still maintaining his calm. It was so much easier to do now that he was content in the knowledge that he had won, "It was my pain for my sister that had fueled my desire for justice, and I do admit that there have been many times when I have wished for nothing more than to simply disregard the law and gain justice through violent means. I have come precariously close to slipping over that edge more times than I care to count."

"Then why do you hunt me?!" Light demanded. How could L understand him and yet not understand him? "Why persecute me for something you want to do yourself but never had the guts?!"

Lawliet sighed and shook his head, feeling a sort of pity for this man now that he was seeing firsthand the true depths of his insanity. Light really never had any chance against the Death Note's seduction, had he?

"If I had done that, I would have lost sight of what truly matters. I would have never learned how to care for another person. Also, I would have been fighting a losing war," Lawliet looked at Light with tired eyes that told of an inborn, ancient wisdom to counter his youth, "Evil will never die, Yagami Light. Once I accepted that fact, things got a little easier. You never accepted that fact. Refused to, even, and now here we sit," He gestured to their respective conditions with one long hand, "Me, injured but alive. You, injured and soon to die. We are much the same, you and I, and yet look at where our choices have led us."

With the apple in his hand, Lawliet allowed himself to place his bare feet on the cold floor. With a great amount of effort, he forced his slightly shaky legs to hold his weight. He swung the apple back and forth from its stem and stuffed his other hand into his pocket. Light jerked slightly against his restraints, wanting to kill this insufferable freak of a human with his bare hands. How the hell could someone like L get everything while he got nothing? It didn't make sense! It wasn't fair!!

"You could have been over here as well, but you gave up that chance the moment you first used the Death Note to kill…Shinigami?" Ryuk stuck his head through the wall, his eyes instantly zeroing in on the shiny red apple in the detective's hand. Lawliet tossed the apple to the Shinigami, not taking his eyes from the bound man on the cot that was now spitting curses at him and thrashing against his restraints, "You may complete your deal with him now."

"Alright," Ryuk spoke through the apple he had stuffed whole into his mouth. Light truly started to panic when Ryuk tugged his Death Note from the holster at his waist. A pen decorated with an intricate skull pattern was tugged from the feathers along his shoulders.

"Wait," Ryuk paused with his pen just millimeters from the ancient paper. He watched as the awkward detective painfully shuffled his way closer to his rival on the cot. Lawliet bent down and couldn't contain the grin peeking at his mouth, "I believe that I will leave you with a small parting gift. Would it trouble you to know, Light, that you have had the key to my death for nearly five months now?"

"…What?" Light hissed through his teeth, his mind rebelling against what this man was telling him. He couldn't possibly….He wasn't saying…

"My name…You have had it in your hands for so long now," Lawliet's grin widened in pure exultance as his voice dropped to nothing but a whisper, "_L Lawliet_."

The pages of Ryuk's notebook fluttered as he dragged his pen along the paper, leaving a trail of ink in its wake. He cackled in glee at the look on Light's face as he began spitting every explicative he'd ever learned at the dark haired man that was resuming his posture of a poorly written English 'S'. His red-brown eyes were huge and his face was robbed of any of the envious composure he had always portrayed no matter how much pressure he was under. It seemed that that mask had finally shattered. Ryuk hyuk-ed again, "It was fun while it lasted."

In forty seconds, Light's body suffered a violent spasm.

In forty seconds, his screaming curses were abruptly cut off.

In forty seconds, the heart monitor flatlined.

In forty seconds Yagami Light, Kira, the most dangerous mass-murderer in the history of mankind and a brilliant student with great prospects…

…was dead…

Lawliet tilted his head slightly, observing the motionless man. It really was a pity that this young man had allowed himself to become overwhelmed by the power of Shinigami. He probably could have one day truly become 'L' then. He could have been a pursuer of justice through hard work, not easy murder.

"What a waste," Lawliet shook his head and glanced over to the Shinigami floating in the corner and tucking his Death Note away, "You are going home now?"

"Yeah. It's not as much fun here anymore," Ryuk drawled, tucking his pen back into his feathers. He then laughed, a disturbing series of cackling 'hyuks', "Better hope we never meet again."

"Indeed," Lawliet chuckled as well as he painfully shuffled out of the way of the crash team that had just entered the room. They were completely oblivious to the tall, ghastly creature floating in the corner, "Enjoy your flight."

"Yeah," Ryuk's hyuks continued, "Enjoy the kids."

And with one powerful beat of his wings, Ryuk was gone, headed back home to the realm in which he belonged. Lawliet stared at the corner of the ceiling through which the creature disappeared for a while, trying to decide whether he hated the godly being or not.

"Lawliet!" He glanced to his left, seeing Ebony with her hands on her hips before using those hands to forcefully direct him back to his chair, "Stay in the chair, damn it! You're going to kill yourself!"

Lawliet allowed her to wheel him from the room that would soon be available for another patient. She was mumbling complaints under her breath, but Lawliet couldn't stop smiling.

'_I almost feel as though I have to thank you, Shinigami Ryuk,'_ Lawliet mused, running his thumb over his bottom lip in thought, _'If you had never come down to this world, I never would have been able to find Ebony and have her as my own.'_

"We are going back to your room," Ebony stated in her no-nonsense tone, "You got me?"

"Yes," Lawliet nodded, _'I got you. So…thank you, Ryuk.'_

"Daddy!" Ebony glanced behind them, having heard the clicking of a pair of little Mary Janes coming up rapidly from behind them. Rem skirted around her mother and stood in front of Lawliet's chair, preventing them from going any further.

"Hello, Rem," Lawliet smiled down at the hyperactive child before him that had his hair and her mother's eyes.

Rem held up her arms, "Up, please! Up! Up! Up!"

Before Lawliet could be stupid and pick up the girl himself, Ebony darted out from behind him and lifted the little girl onto her husband's lap for him. Only after he had lowered his knees down and out of the way, of course. Rem squealed and hugged her father as tightly as she could, her short attention span causing her to forget that her daddy was still sick. He winced as she aggravated his still slightly sore wound, but he refused to complain about it. The old saying was 'no pain, no gain' after all.

Lawliet sighed and wrapped his arms around his little girl, running his hands through her hair. When she had first come to see him awake, she had shrieked in joy and scrambled up onto his cot as fast as her little legs could possibly carry her. She had hugged him and laughed and started talking a mile a minute about everything that had happened while he had been 'sleeping'. Ebony had lay down at his other side and rested her head on his shoulder as their daughter babbled on and on in her excitement. Lawliet had never been happier having his daughter in his arms and his wife by his side where she would always stay.

"Daddy?" Rem fooled around with his hair as Ebony wheeled them both into his room and walked around his chair to help him to his cot, "Is the Kira man gone now?"

Lawliet winced as his wife helped him to his feet so that he could sit on the edge of his cot. He reclined wearily, fatigued from just that stress of standing before Light and getting to the cot. He gently patted his daughter's head.

"Yes, Rem. Kira is gone. It's over."

* * *

Author's Note: So? How was Light's death? Good? Bad? Tell me!

**xxNoTimeToRegret:** L wouldn't be L if his mind wasn't still quick even after a coma.

**Timekeeper101:** Ebony doesn't cry much, but who wouldn't cry after their lover just woke up from a 43-day coma? I'd be bawling like a baby.

**Kit-Kat Punk-lover:** Wow. You were so excited you misspelled 'awake'. Yay!

**The Blonde One:** Make sure to have a pillow on the floor before you go faint. Otherwise you might get a concussion.

**nekosoulreaper:** Yes! Rem is absolutely thrilled. Any kid would be.

**Lunarobi Pride:** No need for forgiveness. I'm not mad. How'd I do with Light's death?

**Stains Of Blood:** Of course L would do mental math. I'd probably do the same thing, only I'd need a calculator.

**MythCreatorWriter:** Was Light's death good? L's name was the thing I told you about that would absolutely torture the crazy-head.

**Miyuki-ice-fox:** Has Light's death made your day today again?

**Crunch Berry Baroness:** I don't recognize your name. I'm glad you're happy L's awake, though. Boo-yaa!

**Orohippus:** Extremely happy? Then what does this make you?

**x-X-xDarkWolfx-X-x:** Yeah. No lumping Light and Billie together. But now Light is no longer available to be lumped in with anybody. Ha!

**xlostinmyownworldx:** Yes! Mello's got a girlfriend! And now Light is dead! Yeee!

Please review for me. I want to know how I did with Light's death. I rewrote this a bit since some people were a bit disappointed with how I wrote Light. I was too. I hope this is better.

-HaleyJo


	35. Rules Set in Love

Author's Note: I almost want to cry as I post this. This has been so much fun...  


* * *

**35. RULES SET IN LOVE**

"AAA!! Hal!"

"Got ya! Got ya- Hey! Rem!"

"Nya-nya!"

Lawliet smiled lazily from his place on the front porch of the Wammy's House orphanage in Winchester, England. The weather was perfect. A bright sunny day with a few passing clouds that many of the children liked to imagine into shapes while lying on large blankets in the grass. There was a light, warm breeze carrying in the scent of the huge field that bordered one side of the orphanage grounds. All the scents of wildflowers and fresh earth that had been renewed from a recent rainfall wafted under Lawliet's nose, clearing his mind. He picked up his mug from the windowsill beside him, inhaling the scent of hot tea briefly before sampling it. After cringing a little, he reached for a small dish that had been by the mug on the sill and added several cubes of sugar to his drink.

"Hey, Lawliet."

Lawliet glanced over his shoulder, his lazy grin growing at the sight of his wife in the doorway. A pretty, white halter dress with black and red flowers decorating the hem draped over her slim frame. Having outgrown her modesty, she now had no qualms about wearing dresses and tops with low necklines. Her petite shoulders were visible, her sugar hair falling over them in its usual twists and turns.

"Hello, love," Lawliet took her little hand in his larger one as she settled onto the bench beside his chair. He brought her hand to his mouth to lay small kisses on her fingertips, "I trust everything is well today?"

"Of course," Ebony smiled and turned to observe the grounds, "Another water gun fight?"

"Indeed. The weather is perfect for it," Lawliet chuckled as he returned to watching the children racing across the grass, dousing each other in water from the faucet on one of the walls of the building, "I believe it is becoming a tie between Hal and Billie."

Ebony focused her gaze on the three children running around the front lawn with colorful water guns in their hands. The oldest was Rem, now nine years old and her thick, shaggy black hair grown down to her shoulder blades. She wore a pink sundress and no shoes since they were playing with water on the lush summer grass. Her little sister, Billie, ran around after her, her snow white ponytails bouncing in time with her feet. The seven year old grey-eyed girl ran around in baggy grey shorts and a white tank top that was now plastered to her alabaster skin by the cold water.

A little boy chased after them both, wearing a scowl that he had learned from his father. Five year old Hal Keehl ran after them in red swim trunks and black flip-flops, his golden blond hair getting blown back since he was running against the wind. Hal had been born in January, about a year after Billie had been born. Amazingly, Mello and Claudia's relationship had survived the turmoil that had followed Kira's defeat and married in 2008. Since he now had a family, Mello had relinquished the title of L to Near so that he could be with his wife and son, much like Lawliet had done before him. They all still helped Near with his investigations every now and again, though. It was impossible for them not to. It was in their blood, plain and simple.

Speaking of Near, the impossible had finally occurred. One of the orphanage children, Linda, had come back to visit after building herself an identity in the art world and hearing of Kira's defeat. The blonde, brown-eyed woman had had a crush on the albino boy since they had still been children, but any and all of her attempts at garnering his attention had been met with that icy steel wall he had built between himself and the rest of the human race. After being coaxed out into the light just a bit by Ebony's efforts, Linda had taken up the job of getting him out the rest of the way.

There was nothing 'official' about them yet, but it was sure to be soon. Linda had wormed her way into his time by helping him investigate photos of crime scenes. With her artistic eye, she often was able to spot things that others either dismissed as unimportant or overlooked completely.

For the longest time Linda had thought that her efforts were going to waste. With Near's inability to express even the most basic of human emotions, she couldn't see whether or not he had any interest in her beyond wanting her artistic sight for his investigations. That all changed, however, the first day he took her hand in his while they were working. Nothing of his composure had changed in the slightest, but that was far more revealing than anything he could have said.

They had been spending time together ever since.

"L and beautiful! The kids kill each other yet?"

Ebony giggled as a red headed young man popped out of the front door with a big grin on his face. His goggles were dangling down around his neck for once, showing his bright green eyes to the world and highlighting his freckles. Behind him came a young Hawaiian woman with ice blue-tipped black hair, one copper hand over her swollen belly.

"Hey Matt. Hey Tech," Ebony scooted over to make more room for them on the bench she was sitting on. Tech was quick to take the offered seat as Matt helped ease her down. Seeing as how the young woman was eight months pregnant, standing for long periods of time was not agreeable to her legs, "How're the babies?"

Yep. Tech was currently pregnant with twins.

"The usual. Kicking like mad," Tech abruptly jumped from another kick. They were clearly willing to prove their mother's words true, "They're going to be a handful when they're born!"

"Nothing we can't handle, dear heart," Matt threw his arm around her shoulders and placed his other hand on her swollen abdomen. Matt just couldn't wait for the twins to be born. He was eager to be a father, and he was probably going to be an awesome one.

Lawliet grinned as Matt blew a large bubble from the gum he was chewing. Seeing as how his wife – wed once Lawliet had recovered enough to attend the ceremony – was pregnant, Matt had finally been forced to quit smoking for good. In order to help him finally kick the habit, he had taken up chewing gum as a means to keep his mouth preoccupied. Lawliet understood the need to distract oneself. He had needed the same thing when he was confined to a wheelchair at Claudia's home.

Seeing as how Lawliet wasn't up for an intercontinental flight right after awakening from a coma, they had spent his recovery time at Claudia's large house in the country outside Tokyo. The Bullock family had been quite well off, and with the estate she had inherited from her late husband, Claudia had ended up with more money than she knew what to do with. Instead of blowing it all on frivolous trinkets, Claudia had only used it to buy herself a house outside the city. She had never been a city girl, preferring the peace and quiet of the countryside as opposed to the smells and noises of the big city. The only other thing she had indulged in was a firing range with which to practice her aim.

Another big reason for her choosing a house in the country. She hadn't wanted any neighbors to hear the gunshots and call the cops erroneously thinking that she was being robbed or something.

Speaking of Claudia, she was standing within a circle of older children just outside the range of the water gun fight. She was teaching them how to use weaponry to defend themselves should the need arise. Since guns were her specialty, she was currently directing them in that. Once each student was up on their feet, Claudia walked around each of them to adjust their stances and handle on their guns as needed. The guns were loaded with blanks, of course.

Her husband of six years, Mello, was off to the side leaning against a tree with his bare arms crossed over an open white shirt. His ice blue eyes flickered back and forth between his wife and his son, ever-watchful for any hint of distress in either of them. Ebony giggled as she watched Claudia trying to keep her focus on the students even as her eyes kept flickering to her husband's bare chest. It was really quite amusing to watch, especially since Mello seemed completely oblivious to the effect he was having on the poor woman. One couldn't be completely sure, however. Wammy's kids were notoriously sneaky.

"Hey Mom!" Hal suddenly ran to his mother, an evil-looking grin plastered to his face. It took no less than a second for Claudia to scream as her son completely doused her in cold water from the red water gun in his hands. Soon Rem and Billie joined in the soaking of the bespectacled woman as well.

"Hey!" Ebony leapt up from her husband's side and ran to the commotion just as Mello did. Somewhere along the way, they collided and were sent to the ground. Rem, Billie, and Hal instantly tackled them, laughing as they went.

"Dogpile!" Matt yelled and bolted from his place by Tech to join in the fun. More children joined in what soon became a full out free-for-all wrestling match. Tech looked on with a bit of jealousy. If she wasn't carrying twins, she would have gotten into the brawl as well.

"This is quite amusing," Lawliet chuckled over the rim of his mug, "Don't you agree?"

"No kidding!" Tech laughed at the sight of her friends and her husband wrestling with children, a few of whom were armed with full water guns.

Hal was soon yelling as his father finally got a hold of him, his little feet kicking as Mello hung him upside down over his shoulder. Rem and Billie pointed and laughed until Ebony lifted Billie up in a similar fashion and then popped Rem on the back of the head for laughing.

"Come on, demon children," Rem giggled and swung her and her mother's arms while she pranced alongside her. Billie was squealing from over Ebony's shoulder and playing with her curly white hair, "Back to school."

All the children went to school at the orphanage. It was kind of like a private school that wasn't obscenely expensive. Rem had once commented that she wished she could go to a normal school just once in order to show everyone her parents. Ebony had started laughing so hard she nearly cried at the mental image of Lawliet going to a parent-teacher conference. That would certainly be a day to remember if they had ever been presented with the situation.

"Daddy!" Lawliet smiled as his youngest daughter grinned at him upside-down over her mother's shoulder and waved her soaked hand at him, "Hi!"

"Hello, Billie," Lawliet waved back at her, the giggles from both his daughters forcing his grin to widen further.

Ebony smiled as well, though hers was from watching the genuine joy in her husband's face. One of Lawliet's greatest abilities that he had honed into an art form was to easily fake expressions or wear none at all. But this was true, pure elation that she had never seen during the first few months he had blackmailed her into the Kira case. He had been even more miserable than she and had expected nothing more in his life. He had never even wanted anything more. It always thrilled her to know that she had been the reason why he had bothered to climb out of his self-induced isolation and let the sun shine on his face again.

"Demon's spawn, they are," Ebony grinned once she had finally gotten her children to go dry off and get back to class. It was always a grand affair since they got so wound up during recess.

"Of course," Lawliet placed his hand on the back of her neck once she returned to his side. He ignored how her wet hair chilled his hand. But considering the weather, it was actually quite enjoyable, "Their mother is part Shinigami, after all."

"I suppose," Ebony sighed and let her head fall to rest on Lawliet's slumped shoulder, slowly soaking the white fabric. She was content to let her mind wander for now as she stared out at the lush greenery of summer in England.

Her thoughts took a somewhat melancholy course after several moments of silence. Once the Kira case was officially deemed closed, things had gotten far worse before they got better. Criminals had celebrated the loss of Kira while many others mourned the loss of their God. Law enforcements around the world had been worked to the bone trying to find some kind of order once Kira's order had so suddenly dropped from the face of the planet. It took about three years for things to settle down to the way they were before Light had had the ill fortune to pick up Ryuk's Death Note.

Light's remaining family was never told that he was Kira. Yagami Sachiko and Sayu were so broken from the loss of Yagami Soichiro that everyone on the case had decided that telling them would just be another unnecessary hole in their hearts. Instead they were told that Light had been Kira's final kill, which in a way he had been. It was part of the pact between Shinigami and those they possessed. Their last victims were indeed the owners of their notebooks.

A funeral had been held after his death, and everyone who was ignorant to his true nature had come to attend and mourn his loss. The only ones who hadn't attended were the Wammy's kids since they felt no obligation to show their faces there. Ebony had gone, but it was merely to comfort Sayu and her mother, not to mourn Yagami Light.

And then, in February of 2008, another funeral was planned for the loss of Amane Misa.

Seeing as how giving up her Death Note had cost her her memory, Misa had also been unaware of the fact that her manipulative lover had been Kira. Even without her hero-worship of the man, her infatuation for him had not lessened in the slightest. Unable to bear his loss, Misa had been discovered in the bathtub of her lavish flat, overdosed on sleeping pills and with both wrists slit wide open as she lay motionless and pale in the red bathwater.

_-----_

_Rem looked down upon the blonde girl in the Yotsuba building ladies' room. This girl reminded her quite a bit of her daughter in a sense. She was doing what she felt she had to do even if it resulted in her being used so callously. Her daughter had made the same sacrifices in order to survive her harsh childhood conditions._

"_Misa," Rem narrowed her visible eye slightly and titled her head just a bit. It was like she was trying to see through her soul, "Do you still love Light more than anything?"_

"_Shinigami, you are real," Misa leaned back against the counter with a small smile on her red lips, "You know everything about me, I totally believe you. I do love Light…Yes, more than anything. If Light was Kira and Misa was Kira too and we were both Kira together…Then that's totally awesome."_

_Rem sighed a bit, almost sadly, "You haven't changed, Misa. Those feelings for Light will never change, will they…?" He voice grew a bit stronger, "I also now believe that your happiness is found by staying at Light's side and helping him."_

"_Thank you, Shinigami."_

"_But if Light tries to kill you," Rem warned, recalling the fate that had befallen her precious Ebony Rose from her own foolish mistakes, "I will risk my life and kill Light."_

"_There's no way Light would kill Misa. And why would you go so far for me?" Misa demanded, "I don't exactly want to be loved by a Shinigami…And if Light died, I couldn't live on without him…"_

_-----_

Though she hadn't known it, Misa's words had rang far truer than she could have imagined. Without Light, she had lost all will to live. Her mental state had steady digressed until she finally couldn't handle it anymore and took her own life. Her funeral had been huge, consisting of all her fans and the few genuine friends she had managed to gain during the few moments that she wasn't trying to please Light.

"Ebony?"

Said woman blinked and glanced up at her Lawliet's face. It showed concern.

"Are you alright, love?" He asked as he slid his hand further so that his arm draped across her slim shoulders.

"Just thinking," Ebony sighed and stared at her bare toes, starting to kick her feet back and forth like a small child, "The aftereffects of the Kira case still depress me sometimes."

Lawliet gently kissed her temple, showing her without words that he understood her dulled sorrow. He then nuzzled her neck affectionately, trying to coax her out of her dark thoughts and back to the present with him where she belonged. It seemed to work since she smiled and touched the hand dangling from over her shoulder. They entangled their fingers together and held on tight.

It was amazing how things could have gone so differently had they not met each other. Light would have been Kira far longer before Lawliet's successors would have been able to catch up to him. They surely would have if it had come to that, but so many more lives would have been lost otherwise. Cornering Light would have taken years and years, and Lawliet would not have been around to personally see to his defeat.

And the bells in his mind would have never stopped.

"I love you."

Lawliet glanced down at his wife, seeing a warm, contented smile directed at him and him alone.

"I love you as well," He replied and sweetly kissed that smile, stroking her cheek as a warm summer breeze rustled past them and entangled their hair together. Moonlight and moonshadow. Yin and yang. Once he released her mouth she started humming, that same gentle tune he first heard in the Tokyo city park over a decade ago. He smiled as her humming morphed into the words.

"When darkness comes show it no fear

I promise you I will always be here

Close your eyes and lay down to sleep

There is no reason for you to weep

Life can be hard and full of pain

But can be washed clean by the rain

Among all the lies this is always true

Never doubt that I love you."

Love…that was what had changed everything. That was what had given each of them everything they could have ever wanted. If Lawliet had not gained Ebony's love, her mother Rem never would have given him a second chance at life. Ebony never would have been freed from her prison in the underworld of illegal bare knuckled fighting. Watari never would have gotten the opportunity to see the boy he saw as his son fall in love. Lawliet and Ebony never would have discovered the joy in becoming parents. Mello would have never met Claudia and come to have a family of his own and finally ease some of the constant tension he had carried since…birth, really. Near never would have started to slowly but surely unfurl himself from the shell he had imprisoned himself in, nor would he have responded to Linda's careful advances. Matt and Tech would have been dead years ago, robbed of their chance to have the two children currently growing in the Hawaiian woman's womb.

Many rules had been broken by their chance meeting. Many things that everyone had been so certain of had been completely altered. Countless things had been shifted by a little four-letter word.

"I have had a thought," Lawliet suddenly said.

"Really?! You?! You've had a thought?!" Ebony asked with mock surprise in her face and voice, "I'm shocked, Lawliet! Really!"

He chuckled at his wife's teasing, yet another thing he loved about her, and kissed her swiftly on the mouth to halt her words.

"Yes, I had a thought about rules."

"Which ones?" Ebony asked.

"All of them, really," Lawliet replied as he began to toy with her fingers, "I believe that many of the rules we have and will encounter have never been set in stone. We have perhaps proved that rules are often shaken free from their stone bases by love. Don't you agree?"

Ebony stared at him for a while, her gaze flickering from one gunmetal, overly dilated eye to the other. She'd never really considered that. She knew that rules were ever changing, but she had never really thought on it much.

Ebony then leaned toward him and captured his mouth. The kiss was gentle but simultaneously raw with a passion that had never died out between them. She cupped his face in her hands as she continued to kiss him and express the very depth of her love and devotion to him. Lawliet's hands gently skimmed across her sides to settle against her back, dragging her closer to him regardless of the fact that she was still dripping wet from the water wrestle not long before.

Both panted for breath once Ebony released his face. They cuddled close to each other and turned to watch the sun. They stayed in that position for hours until Ebony was dry and the sky began to bleed as night battled with day for supremacy.

"I think you're right," Ebony whispered into Lawliet's ear, making the hair on his nape stand up and sending a pleasurable thrill down his spine, "Rules are set in love."

* * *

Author's Note: And so is the conclusion to Rules Set In Love.

**Kit-Kat Punk-lover:** I'm really glad you've enjoyed this story. There will be no more installments of this tale, but a new one is in the making, so check in once in a while.

**x-X-xDarkWolfx-X-x:** This story is over now. I'm glad you liked this story enough to stick with it so long.

**xxNoTimeToRegret:** I'm glad you liked Light's death. I very much enjoyed it as well.

**Orohippus:** Thank you. Light's death has been making me nervous ever since I started Rules Set In Love: Notebook 1.

**Timekeeper101:** I rewrote Light's death a little. I hope you like it.

**nekosoulreaper: **I guess this is an epilogue-ish thing, right? I couldn't end this without one.

**MythCreatorWriter:** Lawliet is always difficult, and being an invalid would not suppress this trait in the slightest. I did rewrite Light's death. Is it a bit better?

**warning746:** No twins for Ebbie, but yes for Tech. You gave me that idea, so thank you.

**skjonn:** I hope this ending was as awesome as last chapter's ending. I don't know your name, but thank you for reviewing.

**Crunch Berry Baroness:** Cool! I left you speechless. How's this one?

**SugarLandBabyGirl:** I'm glad you liked Light's death. Thanks for reviewing since Notebook 1.

**Lunarobi Pride:** Just sing "Ding dong, the warlock is dead'!...Nah, doesn't have the same ring to it...

**Sybil Corvax:** Yes, just one more chapter.

**The Blonde One:** What does WO mean?

**Miyuki-ice-fox:** Some people could get rid of poor little Near no matter how cute he is. So sad...

**HeeHeeHee01:** Don't know you, but I'm glad you liked my story.

**Magpie-chan:** Yeah, I miss Ryuk too, but this ending was still good too, correct?

_Thank you to everyone who has taken the time to review my story. I'm sad to see it end, but also proud since I don't normally finish my stories. You guys totally rock. But I'm not done with Ebony and L just yet. I'm creating an AU Death Note fic as we speak...type...whichever. I'm not sure when I'll post it, but be on the lookout for it. So it's goodbye for now, but just for now. I'll be back! Ja ne!_

-HaleyJo


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